


Trick or Treat!

by WaskeHD



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Autumn, Challenge Response, Drabble Collection, F/M, Halloween
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-28
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:53:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 23,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27762553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WaskeHD/pseuds/WaskeHD
Summary: Flowerpot Discord Server Challenge.Harry Potter goes Trick or Treating with Teddy and Victoire.
Relationships: Fleur Delacour/Harry Potter, Fleur Delacour/Harry Potter/Andromeda Black Tonks, Harry Potter/Andromeda Black Tonks
Comments: 26
Kudos: 141
Collections: Flowers of Autumn





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Heyo people!
> 
> This wasn't supposed to be a thing but then it became a thing and I should have slept more. Oh well.
> 
> I decided quite last minute to throw in my 8k words for a FlowerPot challenge and as per usual I had to make it slightly heretic. What can I say I'm a rebel like that!
> 
> Massive thanks to all the great people on the FlowerPot Discord Server who helped beta read this one and a massive special thanks to VonPelt for still dealing with my bullshit ideas <3 Love you man!
> 
> Update: Well, yeah I redid the story, because reasons and I feel like it turned out better for it.
> 
> Enjoy  
> Waske  
> XxX

Harry Potter had always hated Halloween. It was the night his parents were killed over twenty years ago. This year would be the twenty-second anniversary of the night Tom Marvolo Riddle decided that a fifteen-month-old baby was his equal, murdering his parents in their own home and the shitshow that was Harry’s life following that.

Harry had long since accepted that he would never feel normal or be normal. Having grown up with the Dursleys, he had been taught from a young age that he was no more than a freak, it was almost comical, how right they had been. Harry idly wondered what they were doing right now. He still got Christmas cards from Dudley and his girlfriend, but he hadn’t heard a word about Petunia or Vernon since a week before his seventeenth birthday. What a mess that night had been. 

Following those years his time at Hogwarts hadn’t been all that much better, having to survive one death trap after another at the supposedly safest place in all of Britain. It was nonsense of course looking back at it. A school full of magical children was never going to be safe with magic flying around all over the place, and that was without mentioning anything about kids playing Quidditch. 

Of course his life had ascended to a new peak of danger with the second war during the latter half of his school years. Umbridge had made the school a living hell during his fifth year with it ending with a trip to the Department of Mysteries, because Riddle had sent him visions of his godfather, Sirius, being tortured. Sixth year the school had been invaded because Draco Malfoy had fixed up a vanishing cabinet ending in the death of Albus Dumbledore, he still didn’t know what to think of the man. So many things that had happened during his first sixteen years of life could be attributed to him in some way or another. It was difficult knowing if he had even meant well towards Harry or if he had meant well to the general population sacrificing Harry in the process. He never even got a chance to go back for his final year, spending all of that time hunting Horcruxes with Ron and Hermione, until it all came to a climax in front of Hogwarts. He had died that night, he was certain of it now, but Riddle had as well. It didn’t matter now, it was more than six years ago at this point. 

Life had returned to what most people would call normal. He had finally gotten around to taking his N.E.W.T.s last year. There was only so much one man could procrastinate taking those when Hermione Granger was your best friend, and that was not to mention the other people in his life, specifically Fleur Weasley née Delacour. 

She had lost a lot in the war as well. She had been about to give birth when the final battle at Hogwarts happened but that hadn’t stopped her husband Bill Weasley from joining the battlements to help fight the good fight. He had died saving his brother Fred from a stray killing curse leaving Fleur to raise their child Victoire all by herself. Bill hadn’t been the only death that had happened that night. Remus and Nymphadora Tonks Lupin had also left their son to be orphaned. 

Harry had ended up being a father full-time taking care of little Teddy Lupin, his godson. He had vowed to be there for him where everyone else had failed to do so for him. He was never going to let Teddy grow up without feeling loved. Teddy’s only living relative was his grandmother Andromeda, who had not only lost her daughter, but also her husband during the war. Harry had found her near catatonic in her home near Devon. He had stayed with her and Teddy for almost half a year until Fleur’s patronus had burst into their home, screaming about how her water had broken and she didn’t know what to do. That had been the impetus for Andromeda to get better. She had been trained as a healer and quickly made her way to the floo, Harry following behind her with Teddy in his arms. 

It hadn’t been an easy birth, leaving Fleur more than exhausted. She had broken down holding her daughter close to her chest as she confessed just how out of her depth she was being a single mother with a baby. That had been when Harry had asked possibly the dumbest and cleverest question of his life.

“Why don’t you come live with me?”

He had had more than enough space living in Grimmauld Place number twelve. The house was too big for him all by his lonesome, which was why he had taken up residence with Andromeda and Teddy, but with Fleur and Victoire in the mix, he had suggested moving there. It had been the best decision of his life, he loved having Teddy and Victoire around.

“Dad!”

“Papa!”

Harry was pulled out of his musings to see two small children competing with each other to get into the room. Andromeda and Fleur had of course tried to teach the two kids that Harry wasn’t their father but both had in the end given up. Fleur and Andromeda had agreed that when Teddy and Victoire were older and understood better they would tell the two about their dads and how great they were. Well, Fleur had agreed, Andromeda was still trying to convince him to change Teddy's last name to Tonks, and that there had not been a single ounce of greatness in her daughter's husband. Something, she and Harry would occasionally still butt heads about.

Harry extended his arms and pulled the two children into a hug. Teddy spent most of his time looking like a direct copy of Harry with messy raven-coloured hair and emerald green eyes, something Andromeda would incessantly choose to comment on, telling him how her daughter should have chosen him instead of the coward, as she put it, while Victoire was the spitting image of her mother. Long silver hair that fell down like a moonlit waterfall around her small heart shaped face. Her ice blue eyes sparkling whenever she was up to mischief with Teddy.

“You promised!” Teddy demanded.

“I promise what, kid?” Harry chuckled.

“Papa, you promised that you would go trick or treating with us!” Victoire pouted, puffing up her cheeks.

Harry chuckled and nuzzled his nose further into their hair. He did remember promising to go trick or treating around the neighbourhood with the two children. He had been looking forward to spending some time with the two of them. It wasn’t always easy having to be away from home working. 

Harry looked up when another set of footsteps approached them through the door. He felt an inwardly sense of relief when he saw the soft smile on Fleur’s face. She smiled less since the war. Losing Bill, being pregnant while being unsure of everything, not really liked by the in-laws. Harry was surprised, she hadn’t decided to leave England behind sometimes. 

It was only Teddy and Victoire, who could with some frequency bring her out of her mind’s dark places anymore. Harry shuddered to think about what exactly she was remembering, when her eyes dimmed and her body shuddered. They all had demons, Harry more than most. He had more than once woken up with either Andromeda or Fleur sitting on the side of his bed stroking his hair while he had had a nightmare. He had long since begun silencing his room every night, so at least the two children were spared from seeing him like that.

“Oui ‘Arry. You did promise them,” Fleur said hiding her smile behind the back of her hand. “I hope you have a costume ready for tonight.”

The only word Fleur, likely stubbornly, didn’t pronounce with an H sound anymore was his name. He hated how it made him feel to have her searing blue eyes on him as she spoke his name, it was the sweetest sound and the most addicting. She must have known how it would make him react. She probably enjoyed seeing him squirm under her steady gaze. It had been absolutely unbearable during the first year, they had lived together. Her voice would haunt his dreams, filling him with shame as he woke up, but now If he was being honest with himself, he didn’t even mind it all that much anymore.

“And where are your costumes?” Harry asked Teddy and Victoire, diverting the topic from his lack of costume.

“Grandma Andy has mine,” Teddy said proudly.

“Grandmama has mine too,” Victoire smiled.

Harry shook his head. Andromeda had insisted on being called grandmother by both of the children, even while she often acted like their mother. She had been the one teaching Fleur and Harry how to raise babies when they had had no idea what to do. Harry found it funny that Mrs. Weasley, Molly, he corrected himself inwardly, that was going to take some getting used to, was also Grandma and Appoline Delacour was also Grandmére to the two of them. Having three grandmothers who all doted and spoiled them only made it harder for Fleur and Harry to discipline them but he was happy for them. He was happy to be part of this small slice of happiness that one decision had cut out for him.

“I see,” Harry said with a conspiratorial smile. “And what do you suggest I should go as?”

Harry smiled as he watched the two children stick their heads together, whispering while taking glances between him and Fleur. He had a growing feeling that they were up to no good. While Victoire had inherited more of her mother’s aloof personality and less of Bill’s reckless and danger seeking nature it still was there and if there was one child who could bring that out of her it would be the boy beside her. It was likely his parents' fault being the son of Marauder and a famous Hufflepuff jokester. Harry swore he could hear something about a dragon being thrown around in there.

Harry had come to know when a tantrum was brewing. Victoire would always begin to go Weasley red whenever she was upset, a stark contrast to her silver hair while Teddy did the opposite and turned his hair red in stark contrast to his otherwise calm face.

“Alright you two,” Harry interrupted before it exploded, and someone started crying. “What are your best ideas?”

“Dragon!” Teddy said immediately, before Victoire had a chance to open her mouth.

Harry gave him a long nod and a smile before turning his attention to little Victoire. She was trying to drill a hole in the carpet with her dainty little foot. Harry was certain she had an idea, but she was hesitant to voice it out loud.

“Come on, ma chéri,” Harry whispered gently. “Nobody is going to get angry at you.”

Victoire looked between Harry and Fleur for another few seconds before she breathed in deeply. Harry smiled gently at her to give her some courage. He firmly believed in allowing them to say what they thought and gently guiding them rather than stubbornly tell them what to think. 

“You could go as my real Dad,” Victoire whispered. “With Mama.”

Harry’s smile froze on his face. It still looked gentle to everyone around him but behind it had stopped reaching his eyes. Signs of shock mixed with fear and not a small amount of longing and hope had begun to swirl behind his gold rimmed glasses. He exhaled and breathed in, giving him time to gather his thoughts before opening his mouth.

“But I’m that every day. I can’t be that for Halloween.”

“Oh,” Victoire deflated. “Then you can just be a dragon.”

Harry breathed out a sigh of relief, sounding like a strained chuckle. He used the back of his hand to wipe the accumulated sweat off his brow. He felt awkward, guilty and resigned - too many emotions were floating around his body. He remembered how his co-workers at the Auror Office kept calling him the Orphanage Dad behind his back. 

It was disgusting. He had always known that people would be jealous of the perceived glory credited to him for what he had done. Disparaging him was the only way they could feel better about themselves. It often made him think about quitting and doing just that, becoming a father full-time. 

He loved his current life and he loved taking care of the two balls of joy so untainted by the war. Everyone else around him had felt the war in one way or another. Andromeda had lost everyone except for Teddy. He was the last of her family, while Fleur had lost Bill, she still had her parents and little sister, but they were so far away in France, that it was only during holidays that they visited. She had never been close with the rest of the Weasleys, so when Bill had died it was Harry who had helped her reconnect to that side of the family, helping her to understand that while she might not like them Victoire still deserved to know her Dad’s family.

“I guess, I’ll have to be a dragon then. Now go find Grandma, so that the two of you can get ready.”

Harry tickled the miscreants, making them laugh and run out of his office in delight. Harry chased them all the way until he was blocked by Fleur who had a playfully stern and protective look on her face. Teddy and Victoire hiding behind her legs. 

“That is enough, ‘Arry,” she playfully teased. “I’ll protect them from the Evil Dragon.”

“Dragons aren’t evil though!” Teddy piped up, sticking his head out on the side of her thigh.

“This one is, Teddy! Mama said so,” Victoire stomped her small little foot on the other side. 

“Off to grandma with you two,” Harry laughed. “I think she might be making tea, or …. I’ll… eat you!”

Sounds of running and laughter filled the halls of Grimmauld Place as the two of them ran down the stairs. Harry rose up with a bemused smile on his face. He spotted the signs of Fleur holding back her laughter. Her happiness was infectious to him. He let out a soft chuckle that soon turned into a gentle laugh before ending up as a full-on belly laughter. Fleur’s bell-like giggle soon joined his and it was music to his ears. They only ever laughed because of Teddy and Victoire these days.

Harry was the first to calm down, well, it would have been more correct to say that he was the first to stop laughing. He drank in her laughter like a man thirsty for water in a desert. She was beautiful. He had always known that. She had always been beautiful to him but most of the time it had been ephemeral, fleeting, unattainable. Since the end of the war it had become even more distant like a great big veil had permanently settled unto her face after Bill’s death. She was mourning him, even though it had been years. Harry could never fault her for that. Bill had been the love of her life, the way she had looked at him at their wedding, as they had gotten married. She had been radiant. She still was in the moments when she laughed. It was like the veil over her face was being torn away and her beauty was laid bare for everyone to see.

“… ask? ‘Arry?!”

“Huh? What?”

“Are you even listening to moi?” Fleur tsked, doing a superb impression of the stereotypical French woman, her nose pointed high into the air. 

“Sorry, my thoughts were in another place,” Harry smiled sheepishly. “I’m listening now.”

“Good. What did Victoire ask of you? I couldn’t hear from over here.”

Harry awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. He didn’t know how to tell her without bringing up either bad memories or making her feel awkward about them or both. He didn’t want to lose the way she had just laughed because of the ghosts of the past. She knew him better than that though. She grabbed his ear and twisted it a little.

“Tell me.”

“Ow – ow – alright. Merlin, you don’t have to twist it like that.”

Harry rubbed his ear and sent her an angry glare with no heat in it. He was just trying to protect her feelings. He didn’t want her or Andromeda to hurt anymore. He loved both of them in their own way. It was weird and probably idiotic and definitely something taken out of a teenage boy’s wet dream, but they were the only women that he came in regular contact with, and well… They were beautiful.

“What did she ask you to be?”

“Her ‘real’ dad with you,” Harry whispered, still rubbing his sore ear.

He knew it would happen, but he hated the way his words had made the veil fall back over her face. He wanted to turn back time and somehow stop her from hurting any more.

She didn’t say anything or show any sign of emotion before turning around and walking out of the door. He knew Fleur didn’t cry about it anymore, none of them did, at some point the tears had just stopped coming and had settled as a numb pain in the bottom of their stomach, but it didn’t make it any less painful for her to be reminded of  _ him _ . He sighed loudly and returned to his desk where he had been going over some work. His eyes didn’t seem to register what was written in the file. He leaned his head against the backrest, he wouldn’t be getting any more work done tonight. He should probably head down into the kitchen instead, but he needed to collect his thoughts before he could at least pretend he hadn’t hurt one of the four most precious people in his life. Sometimes his life was exceedingly simple, go to work, take care of Teddy and Victoire, cook some dinner, wash some dirty clothes, other times… it was like walking through a crossfire of killing curses, trying not to rip open old scars and hurts.

Harry was brought out of his musings, when Andromeda’s low dulcet tones reached his ears.

“Dinner’s ready. Teddy and Victoire are excited about tonight.”

Harry looked up and found her warm chocolate brown eyes staring at him with a fondness and a hint of pity. He ruffled his hair, seemingly to shake off the darker thoughts that Andromeda had undoubtedly picked up on. It wouldn’t do to hurt both of the women in the house in one fell swoop.

“I’m going to be a dragon tonight. Do you think the muggles would realize it if I transfigured myself some wings and a tail? It just seems easier than trying to make it look like a costume.”

“Hmm. I don’t know. It’ll be dark by the time you go out and it’s not like they would go with the conclusion that you would be using magic. Just don’t move the wings or tail independently and you’re good. Have you seen Fleur?”

“Maybe she’s in her room,” Harry said defeatedly.

“And why would she go there,  _ Harry James Potter _ ?”

Harry felt like a scolded child whenever Andromeda used his full name. She did the same to Victoire and Teddy whenever they had done something worth being scolded for. It was immediate and effective in its use of conveying disappointment. Harry grumbled. She never did it with Fleur though. It was clear to Harry that while he was only three years younger than Fleur, he was still being treated like a child while she was being treated like an adult. 

He supposed this was how having a real mom would feel like, except for the fact that he sometimes would imagine Andromeda’s body heat next to his own on the lonely nights. That was definitely not something you thought about your mother.

“Victoire asked me to be her ‘real’ dad tonight with Fleur,” Harry sighed, explaining as best as he could. “Fleur didn’t let me brush it over when I got that changed to Dragon.”

“I see,” Andromeda frowned. “Go watch the two menaces. I’ll go talk to her.”

“Thank you, Andromeda. I didn’t know what I was supposed to do.”

“You’re welcome, and when are you going to start calling me Andy like I asked you to?” Andromeda pouted.

“The menaces, right?” Harry decidedly avoided  _ that _ topic.

Harry quickly made his way out of the room before she had a chance to stop him. She had been pestering him to become more familiar with her, and it wasn’t that he didn’t want to, it was just... well there were many reasons why he couldn’t do that to her, so instead he focused on the holiday cheer. 

He loved being in Grimmauld Place on the holidays. Everywhere was decorated with different motives. He never even had a chance to contemplate too much about the day. None of them would allow him to wallow on the eve of Halloween. Teddy and Victoire would bring with them a fresh breeze of air as they ran through the halls, laughter and cheer ricocheting against the walls. Andromeda had shown them all of the old traditions surrounding Samhain, old stories that had been passed through generation after generation of magical families, and Fleur had become enamoured by everything muggle on the holidays. 

Andromeda didn’t seem to have much interest in it even though she had married a muggleborn, but she would still smile as some of the muggle traditions reminded her of a happier time with Ted. Fleur, however, had fallen completely in love with the muggle side of every holiday, having picked up the interest from Mr. Weasley and Bill. While Bill hadn’t been as obsessed about Muggle technology as his dad, he had been the one most interested in their culture, and in their time together Fleur had been completely swept away by the festivities.

Harry was glad to find the two menaces in the kitchen sitting around with their own pumpkins, carving them into scary shapes. He should have been more worried about the two of them using what looked to be scary, but magic helped make a lot of things safer. He loved when magic was being used that way. Andromeda had charmed the two knives in their hands so they wouldn’t cut the children no matter how much they tried, making it fairly safe for them to cut their own faces on the pumpkins.

“What are you two making?”

“Scary thing,” Victoire smiled proudly, turning around her pumpkin so it faced him.

“Dragon!” Teddy said.

Harry shook his head. The sudden interest in dragons had been a recent thing. Charlie had given Teddy a replica model not unlike the one Harry and Fleur had gotten during the Triwizard tournament, and it had been all Teddy could talk about since he had gotten it. Harry had given his own as well and Fleur had asked her little sister Gabrielle if she was willing to part with Fleur’s dragon model. Maybe Teddy would get it for Christmas.

“Well you are doing a wonderful job.”

“Where is Grandma and Mama?” Victoire asked.

“They’ll be here in a moment. They just had something to talk about. Boring grown up stuff.”

Victoire frowned with her small face, looking cuter than what should have been physically possible. Harry ruffled her silver tresses before beginning to clean up the small pieces of pumpkin around the table. He wanted to shield them from the darkness both he, Andromeda and Fleur carried.

“Why are you doing that Dad?” Teddy asked.

“Well, we are supposed to eat soon and then get ready to go trick or treating, right?”

Teddy and Victoire both nodded enthusiastically.

“Well then we’ll need to clean up so we can eat right? Are you almost finished with your pumpkins? We’ll place them outside and put a blue-bell flame inside of them. It’ll look really cool.”

Harry enjoyed playing around like this with them. It made him feel like his struggles had been worth something. That the world had been worth saving even if it had come at a great personal cost to so many of the people around him, that wasn’t to say that they had been the only people affected but some days it felt like it. It had gotten so bad sometimes that he had made it a habit of calling his parents and Sirius on this night every year before going to bed. Apparently, the barrier between this place and the beyond was thinnest on the night of Samhain.

He hadn’t told anyone else that he still had the Resurrection Stone. He had kept it in his pocket on the night he had died. It had been a spur of the moment decision. A small part of him had felt like the world owed him a chance to talk to his parents. He had kept it for himself even if he had told people that he had dropped it in the Forbidden Forest. 

It wasn’t that he needed to have his parents back but that one conversation a year was the chance to actually have a conversation with his Mum. He didn’t call anyone other than those three. It wasn’t that he didn’t have more people he could call. That list was never ending. 

He knew he should let other people talk to their loved ones on this day. Andromeda would love to talk to Nymphadora and Ted while Fleur might find closure if she could talk to Bill. It was selfish of him to keep it for himself, but if he shared it with anyone else it wouldn’t be  _ his  _ anymore. It wouldn’t be sacred the same way it was now. 

He had also found out one of the first Halloween nights that only the person touching the stone could see the phantoms of the dead. He had been interrupted by Fleur and Andromeda after the kids had been laid to sleep. Not being able to see the phantoms of long dead people had made it seem like he was rambling to himself. They had both hugged him tightly in their arms, trying to offer even just a small amount of comfort for him.

Harry still couldn’t forget the smirk that had appeared on Sirius’s face and the warm smile on his mother’s. It was like she had already known something he hadn’t understood at the time. It still irked him that he didn’t understand why Sirius and his Dad had looked at each other with mischievous smiles on their faces that night. He understood it now, but it was better left unsaid than bringing it to the light. After that he had remembered to lock his door behind him. Andromeda and Fleur would still be able to reach him if they really needed him, but it was clear that he wanted to be left alone and they seemed to be respecting that.

Harry and the children had finished cleaning the table except for the two carved pumpkins on top of it when Andromeda and Fleur returned to the kitchen. Harry didn’t say anything, he didn’t want to think about what had happened between them earlier, instead he just reached out to carry the pumpkins to the front door. He was surprised when Fleur stepped in front of him, gently putting her hands on his chest. She usually didn’t get that close to him.

“I’m sorry.”

“It really was no problem, Fleur.”

“You didn’t deserve…”

“Forget it. We all carry our own scars from the war,” Harry whispered so only the two of them could hear it. “It’s alright. You didn’t hurt me.”

Fleur nodded, stepping to the side letting him through. Harry spotted over his shoulder how Fleur was fussing around Victoire, trying to get pieces of pumpkin and juices out of her t-shirt, while Andromeda had planted Teddy on her lap in an attempt to clean some leftover pumpkin from his face with a wet cloth. Harry chuckled at the way Teddy squirmed to get out of her arms. One thing about Teddy, he did not like to get wet in the face. It made for a very interesting time whenever Teddy had to take a bath or shower. Andromeda had told them that Nymphadora had been the same way until she had been about ten after that she stopped fighting it. Here's to hoping that he would be the same or Professor McGonagall would be sending letters back home about bad showering habits when he made it to Hogwarts.

Harry put down the pumpkins outside and cast a bluebell flame inside both of them. The blue flame lit up the street in front of it. He enjoyed the way the flame would change the shapes as it magically floated around the container. Something about the colour made it especially spooky. 

He spent a little more time, taking in the crisp autumn air before heading back inside. Andromeda had already placed the food on the table and Fleur was guiding the children to wash their hands in the sink. Harry stopped in the doorframe to admire what he always thought a family should be like, filled with love and kindness. It wasn’t a normal family by any means. He wasn’t the father of either children, not to mention that was just the beginning of it, but it still was family to him.

Harry joined Teddy and Victoire at the sink and cleaned off his own hands after Fleur had approved of their hands, Harry’s too, much to his amusement. If he didn’t know better he would think it was because she treated him like a child, but as must things in this home it was for the amusement of the kids. The sound of Teddy’s and Victoire’s giggles was worth any sort of embarrassment Fleur put him through.

Harry took the two children by their hands and sat them at their favourite seats. Harry wasn’t sure when it had happened, but at some point he had ended up at the head of the table with Teddy on his right with Andromeda, sitting next to him and Victoire on his left with Fleur, sitting next to her. They always sat like that even when they had guests. Teddy and Victoire would without a doubt both throw a small tantrum if anybody sat in the ‘wrong’ seat at the table.

“You need to eat your food,” Harry pointed out when both Teddy and Victoire were too excited to eat. “You wouldn’t want to stop early just because you ended up hungry.”

“No, Dad.”

“No, Papa.”

Harry looked away from the smiles Andromeda and Fleur sent him. The indulgent smiles he knew they were sending him whenever he acted like the two’s dad made him curl his toes in embarrassment. Their approval felt both itchy and addicting and he didn’t know how to handle it. They somehow always managed to make him feel proud and incredibly small at the same time.

“Then eat your food,” Harry said gently. “Grandma Andy has worked hard to make it taste so well.”

He kept his focus on the kids, not daring to let his eyes wander towards Andromeda. It was the first time since they had begun living with Fleur and Victoire that he had called her by her preferred nickname. He had a feeling that she had a shit eating grin plastered on her face. Maybe a look of triumph too. He didn’t want to see it. He knew it would make his heart tighten once more. It made it harder for him to keep his mind from going places.

Harry had tried to tease out what their costumes were but neither Victoire nor Teddy told him anything. Victoire was looking like the spitting image of her mother whenever either of them were hiding a surprise, a small mischievous smirk playing on their lips. Teddy just had an excited look on his face like he was certain his costume was going to be a big surprise for him.

Harry was practically ordered by Fleur and Andromeda to clean up after dinner while the four of them got ready for trick or treating. Harry didn’t mind, cleaning up after them. It had been easy enough for the three adults in the house to swap between chores. Teddy and Victoire had even gotten old enough that they could help with picking up their toys. It wasn’t much for a six and five-year-old to do but it was something. The rest was easily taken care off with magic. It surprised him how little effort it took for them to actually clean up the place. He supposed it was easier keeping it clean than restoring it as they had tried to during the summer before his fifth year.

He gently wiped off the surfaces before dropping the cloth back over the tap for it to dry. He made his way to his own room. He was slowly beginning to regret allowing Teddy and Victoire to pick his choice in costume. Partial human transfiguration was always harder than the full-scale transfiguration but then again, he only needed to give himself dragon scales on the edge of his face, the hands, a pair of wings and a tail. He also needed to cut a few holes for his wings and tail in his clothes. On second thought, he should ask Andromeda and Fleur for help before he hurt himself doing this.

He walked out wearing nothing but his trousers. Once upon a time, Harry would have been embarrassed about his scrawny stature and the scars littered across his body, some of them from his time before and during the war, but most of them were from the last six years as an auror. It had taken him growing out and putting on some muscles before he had begun to feel comfortable in his own body. Andromeda had been a big help in that process. He would never recover the lost inches because of malnutrition, but he had stopped minding about the what’s if of his life. He acknowledged it all as being part of him.

He followed the sounds of laughter through the halls until he reached Andromeda’s bedroom, remembering that she had the costumes with her for both of the kids. He knocked on the door not wanting to ruin the surprise that the kids had for him. It was part of the fun for them.

He heard the sound of footsteps on the other side of the door and took a step back. Fleur opened the door, poking her head out through the gap. Harry had to bite his knuckles, so he didn’t laugh at her half-painted face. She had half a set of cat whiskers extending from under her nose and her nose were coloured black. She looked cute but ridiculous at the same time.

“Are you laughing at me, ‘Arry?” she frowned dangerously.

“No. I wouldn’t even think about it. But you might want to ask Hermione for pointers about being a cat. She has first hand experience.”

“Why are you here?” Fleur ran her eyes over his body. “And like that?”

“I need help not messing up my transfigurations and maybe someone to help me with some clothes. It’s hard getting dressed when you have wings and a tail.”

“Oui,” Fleur nodded seriously. “We wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself. I’ll ask Andromeda to help after the children are ready, not before, oui?”

“That’s alright. I’ll just wait in my room until you guys are done,” Harry turned around, walking away. He had almost made it out of earshot when he looked over his shoulder straight back at Fleur. “Nice whiskers by the way.”

Harry laughed as he heard the frustrated groan coming from Fleur. He would have never imagined himself teasing the woman when he had first met her during his fourth year at Hogwarts, the thought of his embarrassing past made him chuckle as he made his way back to his room. He found a set of clothes that he didn’t mind losing if he somehow messed up the costume for himself. He decided to wait for the women to arrive. He wasn’t about to cut something before Fleur or Andromeda got here. He was sure it wasn’t going to take much longer for them to finish up with the children.

He was just about to go check on them when the door to his room was opened. He gasped in surprise. He hadn’t expected Andromeda to have gotten a costume too and definitely not the one she was wearing. He was certain that one couldn’t be considered innocent anymore. Her nurse costume consisted only of a second world war apron on top of what looked like a black corset, her legs were covered by a dark set of leggings and the knee length black boots did little to make it less risqué. A healthy amount of skin was shown around her shoulders and under her arms. Andromeda was awkwardly holding her arms around her chest to cover what was being revealed.

“She’s beautiful, non?”

Harry turned to Fleur who had bought a full body latex suit that was hugging her curves tighter than Harry thought was possible, her silver hair was tied up around a pair of black cat ears that almost looked like they were transfigured on top of her head if it wasn’t for the fake look they had. The zipper at the front of her costume was barely pulled up past the curve of her chest showing the same amount of skin as Andromeda, but she wasn’t embarrassed to show off her assets in a very self-confident way.

Harry nodded dumbly at the sight of both of them. It was times like these when he was forced to acknowledge that both of them made him feel something more than just a platonic co-existence. Something he kept trying to squash in himself. Squash so thoroughly that he didn’t do something entirely stupid and very much male.

“I think we broke him,” Fleur’s voice sounded alluring and teasing to him.

Andromeda seemed to catch a second wind and relaxed her hands down to her hips, twirling around for him to see everything. She smiled more reassuringly by the time she was facing him again.

“I’m glad you enjoy it. I must admit when Fleur talked me into this I was more than a little skeptical.”

Harry found his voice. “No, no. You both look amazing. Seems like I’ll be having a hard time keeping the uncouth men away from you two.”

He enjoyed the blush that surfaced on both of their faces. They shyly smiled at him making them both seem more beautiful than they had been just a moment ago.

"Then we are lucky that you will be a fierce dragon, non?" Fleur winked.

“Right, you needed help?” Andromeda coughed.

“Yes, I wasn’t sure how to get the transfigurations and the clothing to work right. It’s over there.”

Harry pointed to a pile of clothes on his bed.

“I’ll help with your transfiguration, Fleur was always the best of us with charms.”

“Oui, I’ll take care of it, ‘Arry.”

Harry described what he had thought for his costume and soon a half-dragon half-human hybrid was standing in front of his full-length mirror. He flexed his shoulders and watched the wings fold and unfold behind him. They were magnificent. He was sure it was going to be a hit with Teddy.

“You probably shouldn’t do that when we are outside,” Andromeda smirked, running her hands over his scales.

Harry shivered and his tail twitched a little at her touch.

“You can feel them?” Andromeda asked wonderingly.

Harry nodded, sending her an embarrassed smile. He shivered again, turning his head with an incredulous look on his face. He had expected her to stop running her hands over his wings when she found out he could feel it. He was even more surprised when he felt Fleur’s dainty fingers running down his tail, making it stretch and move around.

“Magnifique,” Fleur whispered. “You make an impressive Dragon.”

“Thanks,” Harry said dryly. “How do I put on my clothes?”

“I think it’ll be easier if you fold in your wings first and then extend them through the holes in the back,” Andromeda said. “Here, we’ll help you out, but I think we should forego a shirt. What do you think, Fleur?”

“Oui, it would be more trouble than it is worth, we will just use warming charms.” 

Harry finally managed to fit his extra appendages through his modified black coat. His tail sticking out through a hole in a pair of slacks. His coat was split in the back just above the tail, parting it on either side. He stretched his wings and made sure they were sitting in a comfortable position.

“How do I look?” Harry asked.

“Teddy will be so excited,” Andromeda said.

“Victoire might be a little frightened, you look big and scary like an evil dragon,” Fleur said.

“If I’m an evil dragon would that make you my kidnapped maidens?” Harry teased.

He had been expecting anything else but the reaction he had gotten. He had thought they might slap him for his idiotic comment or maybe roll their eyes, but instead they both blushed and turned their head away each other, before snapping them back to have a silent conversation between them.

“We should go check on Teddy and Victoire to see if they are up to mischief,” Harry interrupted whatever was going on.

“Yeah,” Andromeda said, turning her attention back to Harry.

Fleur nodded as well and made for the door. Harry followed after her with Andromeda taking up the rear. They found the children sitting patiently in the kitchen. Both their heads turned around to see them. Their excited faces made all of them smile warmly at them. Teddy was dressed up as a werewolf, probably because of what he had heard about Remus. Victoire was dressed as what the muggles thought a witch looked like. She had a stuffed cat as well as a pointy hat.

“You look amazing,” Harry said genuinely. “A werewolf and a witch.”

Fleur and Andromeda had been right about their reactions. Teddy’s eyes lit up with excitement when he spotted the scales and Harry’s wings. He ran excitedly around Harry taking in his whole appearance.

“You became a dragon!”

“I did little man,” Harry chuckled. “That’s what we decided on, right? Watch this.”

Harry extended his wings to their full length. Victoire had chosen to hide behind Fleur but Harry had spotted how she would extend her head out from behind her, taking in his appearance. She was interested, if a little frightened.

“How is it, mon chéri?” Harry asked gently. “I’m still the same Papa.”

“Papa is a little scary,” Victoire said timidly. “You look like you would eat me.”

“You think I’m an evil dragon?” Harry asked, getting down on his knee in front of Fleur. He didn’t hear the small hitch in Fleur’s breath.

“Maybe,” Victoire whispered.

“Don’t worry, your Mama and Teddy will protect you, right?”

“Right,” Teddy nodded fiercely, getting himself in between Harry and Victoire. Fleur was gently pushed to the side by him.

“See, there is nothing to be scared of.”

“Okay,” Victoire nodded. “You aren’t all that scary.”

“That’s good,” Harry chuckled.

Harry rose from his position and got back up on his feet. “Is everybody ready to go trick or treating?”

A chorus of ‘yeahs’ filled the kitchen while Andromeda and Fleur got their coats and the children’s coat from the hanger in the hallway. Harry had gotten them each a bag with a featherlight charm on it so they wouldn’t get tired from carrying their own bags around all evening. It might be cheating but then again, what surrogate parent wasn’t biased.

Harry found his hands being taken by Teddy and Victoire, making Fleur and Andromeda trail behind them, whispering about something that Harry couldn’t hear. They made their way to the nearest house. Harry gently pushed the two of them forward. Teddy as the oldest one took Victoire’s hand, squaring his small shoulders and pushed the doorbell.

An elderly woman opened the door with a big smile on her face and a bowl of sweets in her hand.

“Oh my, how scary. A werewolf and a witch.”

“Trick or treat!” The two of them shouted in unison.

“Oh, I must go with treat. I’m getting far too old for any tricks you two look like you could come up with.”

Teddy and Victoire both extended their bags and the woman dropped in a few pieces of candy in each. Her eyes turned to the grown-ups behind the children and a small gasp of shock came out of her mouth.

“That might just be the most impressive costume I’ve seen in a long time.”

Harry awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck.

“Dad is a dragon.”

“An evil dragon,” Victoire added. “He eats little kids.”

“I much prefer candy,” Harry chuckled. “Come on you two rascals. We have many more places to visit.”

“Coming, Dad.”

“Coming, Papa.”

The woman looked oddly at Harry, before turning her eyes to Fleur and Andromeda. She shook her head and smiled at them. It wasn’t any of her business. She was sure the little girl was the silver haired woman’s daughter which would make the boy the other woman’s. If both of the children called him Dad… well she had seen her fair share of different families during the sixties she supposed.

“Though I’m certain my old nurse's uniform didn’t look like that,” she chuckled to herself. 

Harry led the two children down the street towards the next house. This time around they needed no encouragement to run up and push the doorbell. Another series of compliments and shocked impressions about Harry’s choice of costume and they were on their way to the next house.

By the fifth time Harry had gotten a compliment for his ‘costume’, Fleur couldn’t stop herself from giggling at his expression. His face was pulled taut in a strained smile.

“I think we might have done too good a job,” Andromeda mused.

“Maybe,” Harry admitted. “I didn’t really think about that. I’m an Auror, I should be arresting myself.”

“You look magnifique,” Fleur said. “Most impressive.”

“Too impressive, maybe. I also don’t want to take anything away from Teddy and Victoire.”

“You aren’t, Harry. Look at them, they are having so much fun doing this. I’m surprised it’s so popular,” Andromeda mused.

A lot of parents were walking around with their own children trick or treating, moving around in small groups all the way down to just pairs of a single parent and child. The general noise of happiness seemed to fill the cold streets.

“I think it’s because it gives them an excuse to spend time with them,” Harry shrugged, making his wings twitch. “We all work so much and while they do fine, being in school. Even with the three of us it still gets hard spending any real time with them.”

“I think I understand, ‘Arry. With me at Gringotts, Andy at St. Mungo’s and you with the Aurors. We are all busy at times.”

“I’m just glad we are able to be there for them,” Andromeda said. “It warms my heart seeing their friendship as they grow up.”

“Don’t you see them more like siblings?” Harry asked.

“Maybe now,” Andromeda smiled secretively. “But I wouldn’t be surprised if they end up together in ten years.”

“Andy! Mon petite chéri with a brute like that?” Fleur gasped in mock-horror.

“Whose grandson are you calling a brute?” Andromeda quipped back.

“Yours of course,” Fleur laughed. “I suppose my petite chéri could do worse.”

“Alright, no fighting. That might not even happen.”

"I have a galleon which says it does."

Harry ignored the older woman's retort and turned to look at the two in question and saw the signs of them getting into an argument. He quickly rushed forward and placed himself between them.

“What’s going on?”

“Teddy won’t let me push the doorbell,” Victoire sniffed.

“Why not Teddy?”

“It’s my turn.”

“Have you been switching every time?”

“No,” they both said.

“This time Victoire will push the doorbell and next time Teddy will okay?”

“Okay, Dad.”

“Okay, Papa.”

“Good.”

Harry was already beginning to see the signs of tiredness on their faces. If he wasn’t able to guide their way back to Grimmauld Place soon, he would likely have to carry them in his arms, not that he would mind. He enjoyed these last few years where he would still be able to carry them around before they got too big. Teddy was already growing so fast and Victoire wasn’t a small child either. She had a healthy appetite too, must be the Weasley genes in her.

They managed to make it through three more streets before Victoire yawned loudly, blinking her eyes tiredly.

“You feeling sleepy, mon chéri?” Harry asked softly.

“No!” Victoire said fiercely.

“Do you want me to carry you?”

Victoire yawned once more and nodded. Harry got the bag out of her hands and handed it to Fleur before he put his arm under her thighs and lifted her up so she could rest her head against his shoulder. Fleur sent him an apologetic smile, but he just waved off with his free hand. He saw Andromeda whisper something in Fleur’s ear that made her turn her face away.

“What about you, little man?”

“I can still go on,” Teddy said.

“If you get tired, just tell me. Let’s go this way.”

“Alright, Dad.”

Harry followed behind Teddy checking him for any signs of him falling asleep. They must have been out there for a couple of hours at this point. He knew that Teddy was just putting on a brave face but it was still cute to see him soldier on like that, being the big brother came with some responsibilities. Harry was sure that any ‘extra’ candy Teddy managed to get would be shared with Victoire. They were already a team even if they didn’t realize it yet. Teddy would always have Victoire’s back .

Teddy made it past another street before his shoulders began drooping down as well. Harry preemptively got up next to him and pulled him up on his free arm. Andromeda got the bag out of his small hands. With a smile on his face Teddy rested his head on Harry’s other shoulder and fell asleep almost immediately.

“I think it would be better if we went home,” Harry said, voice tinted with humour. “You got the goods?”

“Of course,” Fleur rolled her eyes. “I can carry Victoire if you want. You must be tired.”

“Not at all, she barely weighs anything. Light as a feather like her mother. Although I will remember your offer in a few years. But until then I can make it home without any trouble. Lead the way.”

Andromeda looked around and found the quickest way back. It didn’t take them long before they made it to the front of their home. Harry would have lied if anyone had asked him if his arms were alright at this point. He might have said that Victoire didn’t weigh anything but having to carry her for the past half an hour and then another fifteen minutes with Teddy on the other arm did make both of his arms and shoulders get sore.

He gently lowered them into their respective beds, neither of them caring that they were still wearing their costumes. Sleeping in their clothes for one night wasn’t going to ruin anyone’s day and tomorrow they would be too excited about their gained spoils to even notice it themselves. The only point of concern was having to clean their covers of any makeup being smeared on their pillow cases but Harry was more than happy to do that if it let them sleep a little more.

He made it to the kitchen, finding Andromeda and Fleur sitting with a cup of tea, each still in their own costumes.

“Did you want some?” Andromeda asked almost apologetically. “I figured it would help us warm up a bit. It was a bit cold out there.”

“They enjoyed it, non? I say it was worth any amount of cold. Are they sleeping?”

“Yeah,” Harry smiled. “I put them in still wearing their costumes.”

“The sheets?!” Andromeda exclaimed.

“I’ll wash them all tomorrow,” Harry said gently. “And yeah I think they enjoyed themselves.”

“That’s good.”

“I agree,” Fleur nodded. “I would do anything for my petite chéri.”

“We would all do anything for them,” Harry added. “They might not be mine either of them, but for as long as they still call me Dad or Papa and need me, I’ll be there for them and after they have stopped needing me, I’ll probably be needing them. I would still give my life for them to grow up without having to worry about anything.”

Harry idly poured himself a cup of tea adding a little milk to it. He knew that Fleur was appalled at his way of drinking tea. He still chuckled whenever she would scrunch up her nose in displeasure as she saw the murky mix of milk and tea. He had just turned around when he felt a set of lips on his. His eyes widened in disbelief when he saw the silver hair and Fleur’s closed eyes, his own automatically closing themselves in response to the soft touch of her lips. He felt them fall away from his but her closeness was still there.

“What was – “

He was interrupted by another set of lips, different, fuller. He responded equally with the new set of lips, but his brain was working overtime. When they disappeared, Harry opened his eyes finding both Andromeda and Fleur pressed up against him. Their soft bodies in contrast to his own hard and muscled surfaces.

“What is going on?” Harry asked hoarsely.

“We want you,” Fleur said. 

Andromeda blushed and lowered her head.

“Why now?”

“We…” Andromeda whispered. “I… I didn’t think you would want me too, so I was waiting for you and Fleur to get together, but seeing your reaction to…”

“I told her she was being bête. The way you look at us. You want us both, non?”

Harry groaned. Their scent, distinct and different, teased his nostrils making his thoughts muddy and unclear. Arguments for and against were waging war inside of his head.

“Do you want us?” Fleur asked again, breathing into his ear.

“Yes,” Harry groaned. “But…”

“No buts,” Fleur interrupted. “We want you too.”

“I can’t be with both of you,” Harry moaned.

Andromeda took a step back. Her warmth felt like the loss of something precious to him. Fleur reached out and pulled her back in.

“No worries, Andy. He is being bête too. Harry, look at us.”

Harry opened his eyes and looked into two sets of eyes, one ice blue and one chocolate brown. Andromeda blushed once more but her eyes were fierce and determined.

”“Harry… If we are sure we want this… Why are you so against it?” Andromeda asked in a fierce whisper.

“It’s just not done that way.”

“Mon dieu. ‘Arry James Potter. Since when have you done anything the ‘normal’ way. Two beautiful women want to be in a relationship with you and you are telling us no?”

Harry felt himself faltering, his legs turning unsteady. He pulled himself away and found his way to a chair. Fleur and Andromeda pulled out two chairs, turning them to face him. Harry emptied his cup of tea in one go, his head still spinning.

“I… Saying… how… how would this even work?”

“He really is… dense,” Fleur shook her head.

“You did say he couldn’t make sense of it.”

They both sat back waiting for Harry to say anything. Harry groaned and rested his forehead in his hands. Andromeda got up and filled up on tea for all of them. He finally raised his head again and looked straight at the two women.

“What would starting this mean for Teddy and Victoire? What if it doesn’t work out? No matter what happens between us, it will not affect them negatively.”

Fleur beamed and clasped her hands together. Andromeda was more subdued, but her relief and joy was plain on her face as well.

“What?” Harry asked dumbfoundedly.

“He always thinks of them first. See, that’s why I feel for him.”

“I know,” Andromeda smiled. “He really makes a good dad, maybe this house will soon have more small ones running through it, you are still young, Fleur.”

“You are a witch, Andy. It is not too late if you wish for some yourself.”

“Wait, hold up. You didn’t answer my question though.”

“For the moment nothing changes for Teddy and Victoire. If we decide to marry and trust me there have been precedents for multiple marriages, well, then it would really be up to us. Teddy is a Lupin, so while he is my grandson and your godson, he is free to keep his last name, no matter how much it irks me, you could adopt him making him a Potter if you want. I suppose there is inheritance to think about, but that’s about it and hopefully not until far in the future.”

“Victoire would still be a Weasley,” Fleur frowned. “Same as Teddy, you could adopt her as a Potter, but I guess we would have to talk to Molly and Arthur about that. It is mostly for legal reasons, but still it is worth considering.

“Wow…” Harry breathed out. “That’s…”

“A lot,” Fleur finished. “We understand.”

“This is still in the future and only if we one day decide to do that. As Fleur said earlier, you have a habit of doing nothing normal after all,” Andromeda explained. “Right now…”

“We still want to try it out and you were too much of a coward to do anything yourself. So we had to do something,” Fleur continued.

“And you did call us your maidens, Evil Dragon,” Andromeda smirked.

“I was just joking,” Harry said weakly.

“We’re not.”

“We are being serious,” Fleur said. “The children both think of you as their father already. They would not care about it, and we have needs.”

“And you are both sure this is what you want?”

“Yes, you dense man.” Andromeda sighed. “Do you know how difficult this is for me? I’m older than your mother. I was about to finish Hogwarts when she started. Not to mention that I have to compete with this tight piece of arse.”

“Why thank you, Andy. You look very beautiful yourself, doesn’t she ‘Arry?”

Harry nodded. He still couldn’t comprehend what was going on. He stared dumbly at the smirking women. His eyes roaming their bodies taking in every inch of their curves. Andromeda was fuller while Fleur’s lithe body was even more emphasized by the latex suit she was wearing.

“If you are going to undress us with your eyes, I would prefer it if you continued in the bedroom,” Fleur said seductively. “Don’t you agree?”

“I do,” Andromeda breathed out heavily. “Come on, Evil Dragon. Show us the treasure you are hiding.”

“You did not just say that,” Fleur giggled. “She is right though, Mr. Dragon.”

Harry opened and closed his mouth, still not believing this was real. Not even when they each grabbed one of his arms pulling him up the stairs towards the master bedroom.


	2. And Where do we go from here?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello People
> 
> I never really meant to write this, but you know how it is.  
> Thank you VonPelt for helping me Beta-read this and Shiro for giving me the motivation for this chapter.
> 
> Enjoy  
> Waske  
> XxX

Harry was roused from his sleep by a lack of feeling in his arms. He was still groggy from last night's escapades. It was slowly coming back to him. He had gone trick or treating with Teddy and Victoire, then he had carried them back after they fell asleep, he remembered putting them in bed still wearing their costumes instead of coaxing them out of them, after that he had gone back down into the kitchen, where Andromeda and Fleur had enjoyed a cup of tea. He opened his eyes wide realizing why he couldn’t feel anything in his arms. 

On his left Fleur was drooling lightly on his chest, there was something highly amusing about otherwise calm Fleur looking so innocent and vulnerable. On his right side he found the back of Andromeda’s head hugging his arm as she snuggled in close to him with her backside pressed tight against his body. 

He was still coming to terms with the fact that he had taken two beautiful women to his bed, or maybe it was the other way around, not that it mattered in the end. It had almost blown his mind, trying to pleasure both of them. Thankfully, they didn’t seem to be adverse to each other either. He tried to free himself from them. He didn’t want either Teddy or Victoire to walk in on them like this. 

“Hmm… Don’t move…” Andromeda moaned.

“Cinq minutes de plus…”

Harry kissed both of their heads, pulling himself free from them. They both shivered as the duvet fell off their bodies, revealing their nakedness to his eyes. Harry quickly crawled out of the bed, trying not to disturb them further. When he cast a last glance at them before walking into his bathroom, he saw Fleur pull herself up flush against Andromeda’s back still sleeping. 

He shook his head and got himself ready for the day. After a quick shower he went to check on Teddy and Victoire, finding them both snoring in their respective beds. It was a Saturday and all of them had gotten the day off. There wasn’t going to be an emergency call for any of them, thankfully. 

It had been a long night for everyone, which was why Harry was done with cooking breakfast long before the first signs of life appeared in the kitchen. Teddy walked in with droopy eyes, still yawning as he sat down in his seat. Harry levitated a glass of orange juice over to him. His face paint was smeared all over, making the boy look like a homeless panda. The next to arrive was unsurprisingly Andromeda. They would always get up earlier than Fleur and Victoire.

_ Maybe it is something about being a Veela or being French, _ Harry mused idly to himself. 

He managed to get eye contact with Andromeda, making both of them blush like teenagers. Harry was glad that Teddy still wasn’t fully awake. He could just imagine the type of questions being thrown his way by an inquisitive boy. 

“Dad, why are both you and Grandma looking like tomatoes?” or “Dad, why do you look so funny?” or “Dad, are you sick?”

Yeah, it was better for his sanity if he stopped blushing whenever his eyes met with either Andromeda or Fleur. He was just about to say good morning when Andromeda had walked over and placed a chaste kiss on his lips. Harry spluttered almost pushing the pan with bacon unto the floor. 

“Good morning,” she whispered quietly. “It wasn’t nice of you to leave us without even a kiss.”

Harry tried to get his mouth back in working order, but he was still constantly surprised by the forwardness of the two women. 

“Good morning,” he finally managed to stammer before ending up completely looking like an idiot. “How did you manage to get away without waking…”

“She didn’t,” a grumpy voice rang out in the kitchen. “Andy, that was not very nice.”

Andromeda shrugged, before she went to make a pot of tea for her and Harry and another pot of coffee for Fleur. Harry focused back on his cooking, making sure that nothing was getting burnt. It wouldn’t be long until Victoire joined them as well. He paused slightly when he felt a set of slender arms around his waist. 

“You weren’t nice either, ‘Arry,” Fleur pouted. “Leaving both of us alone.”

Harry blushed again, remembering the way the two women had cuddled up against each other. 

“You looked comfortable with each other,” he mumbled.

“Oui,” Fleur breathed. “But I was feeling ready for  _ un autre tour _ .”

“I see,” Harry said.

He felt Fleur’s lips on his neck for a moment before she was gone. He was certain that Teddy must have noticed something. He quickly scooped the eggs and bacon onto a platter. He knew that Fleur needed something lighter for her breakfast, so he quickly whipped up some yogurt with strawberries and crushed almonds. The last occupant of the house made her entrance by the time he had placed the food on the table. 

Victoire really was Fleur’s daughter. She yawned cutely, blearily looking around as if this time of the morning was for people beneath her station. Harry ruffled her hair as he walked past her, earning himself a small outcry in protest. She would only truly wake up long after she had gotten something to eat. 

Teddy, however, had gotten his legs under him and was teetering on the edge of excitement. His head was swivelling around the kitchen, trying to find the two sacks filled with candy from the night before.

“You, young man, will take a bath before you get anywhere near that candy,” Andromeda said, pouring cold water over his head. 

“But grandma!”

“No buts,” Harry said. “You look like a sad panda. We need to wash off the face paint.”

Teddy pouted, sending eyes filled with betrayal at Harry, who didn’t bend in the slightest. He knew it his turn to bathe Teddy, making him regret having taken a shower already. Victoire was awake enough to smile mirthfully at Teddy’s despair.

“And you, ma petite, will also need a bath,” Fleur said, wiping off the smirk on Victoire’s face in one swoop. 

Victoire didn’t hate baths as much as Teddy did, but she still wasn’t a fan of them. She had hated having her hair washed since the one time when she had accidentally gotten shampoo in her eyes. 

“You’ll get your candy as soon as you are clean,” Harry promised them, watching the hope return to their small faces.

“You are being soft of them,” Fleur said. “But that is why we like you.”

Andromeda smiled and nodded along to Fleur’s words. “I’ll take them. You promised to clean up their sheets last night.”

“I did, didn’t I?” 

“That you did, mon amour,” Fleur said. “No candy for you until you have done your chores.”

“Alright, alright,” Harry chuckled. “I’ll do it without a fuss.”

“See, Papa does what he doesn’t want to do, so can you,” Fleur said, brokering no protest from either of the children.

“After that we could go on a day trip,” Harry suggested. “How would you two feel about a trip to the zoo?”

“Can we see Hippogriffs?” 

“I want to see a niffler,” Victoire said.

“I don’t think we will find those in the zoo,” Harry said. “But there will be lions and elephants. How does that sound?”

“Hmm, alright,” Teddy shrugged. Victoire nodded along with him. 

Harry ran a hand each through their hair. Since Harry had begun reading _Fantastic_ _Beast and Where to Find Them_ for them before going to bed they had both been more interested in Magical Creatures. Harry could already see how Teddy would love attending Hagrid’s classes. The amount of times Teddy had asked for a Five X classification magical beast as a pet was astounding. The boy lived and breathed the mantra of _the more dangerous the better_. Harry was already fearing for his safety by the time he began attending Hogwarts. Well, maybe he could arrange something with Hagrid before then, something which hopefully involved safer creatures. 

After breakfast Andromeda led Teddy and Victoire towards one of the bigger bathrooms in the house, leaving Harry and Fleur to clean up the table. It didn’t take long before Fleur found herself snuggling into Harry’s chest.

“Do you regret it?” she asked nervously.

“Not at all,” Harry kissed her forehead. “I just don’t know how to act around either of you, especially not when there are others in the room.”

“You seemed to be doing well enough last night,” Fleur flirted.

“I was referring more to Teddy and Victoire,” Harry flicked her forehead, eliciting a small whine from Fleur. 

She rubbed her forehead with a pout on her lips, but didn’t move away from him in the slightest. Harry ran a hand through her hair down her back. He enjoyed the way she literally purred into his chest.

“So, how are we doing this going forward?” Harry asked after a while. “And do we need Andromeda for this talk?”

“Hmm,” Fleur pondered. “What do you mean?” 

“I’m kind of rusty at this whole… ehm… we are dating right?” 

“Yes,” Fleur rolled her eyes, giggling at his lack of eloquence. “We are dating, all three of us are dating. I’m dating both you and Andy, Andy is dating both of us and you are dating both me and Andy as well.” 

“Okay… So you two will be kissing and stuff?” 

“We will be doing a lot of  _ stuff _ ,” Fleur said, pulling away from Harry with a wink. “We will not have to depend on you in the bedroom..”

Harry shook his head to clear it of the highly alluring images Fleur’s words had conjured in his mind. She wasn’t playing fair in the slightest.

“But I agree with you - I don’t want to show Teddy and Victoire too much.”

“Thankfully, they aren’t in the boys and girls are yuck phase yet,” Harry sighed in relief. “I am not looking forward to that time.” 

“I’m not sure if that will happen to Teddy and Victoire,” Fleur shrugged. “They are close like siblings. Maybe other children might be yuck but I don’t think they will think that of each other. But you need to get going, you promised to get the sheets.”

Harry walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her waist, leaning down to give her a quick kiss. She deepened it by wrapping her arms around his neck. Harry didn’t know how long they had been kissing for when she released him.

“I could get used to more of that,” Fleur whispered. “I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.” 

“Me too.”

“Why didn’t you do something then?”

“I thought you were still mourning Bill.”

“‘Arry, I will always mourn Bill, I loved him, but he wouldn’t want me to stay alone for the rest of my life. It is the same with Andy, she also mourns for Ted, but she has come to love you not as a mother but as a woman. You better not forget about that. You make the days better for us as we hope to make the days better for you two.”

“You do,” Harry smiled.

“And we do like it when you are being very daddy to Teddy and Victoire.”

“Uhm… I don’t think you mean what you’re saying,” Harry chuckled. 

“Did I say something wrong?” Fleur lifted her eyes questioningly. 

“No, I suppose not,” Harry shook his head. “It’s just… hearing the word Daddy coming from you…”

“Do you want me to call you Daddy?” Fleur asked seductively.

“Please don’t,” Harry said quickly. “I do _ not _ want Victoire to pick up on it and doing the same.”

“Whatever, ‘Arry.”

Harry left Fleur to get herself ready for their trip to the zoo, while he took care of the left over mess from the night before. He ran into Andromeda on his way down to the basement where the washing machine was. She looked exhausted and slightly frustrated.

“What’s wrong?” Harry asked, moving the sheets under his arm before pulling Andromeda into a hug.

“It’s nothing really, Teddy and Victoire just don't want to shower together anymore. We got into a row and there was crying. I suppose it was about to happen at some point. You’re going to have to shower with Teddy until he learns to wash his hair by himself. I think that Victoire will still shower with me and Fleur.”

“I see,” Harry said, kissing the top of her forehead. “It was bound to happen at some point. You told me that Nymphadora stopped wanting to shower with Ted at that age.”

“I know, it’s just… they are growing up so fast. I like it when they are small enough that I can control them. It’s when they get older that they start getting really hurt. I don’t want Teddy to end up like Nymphadora.” 

“He won’t,” Harry said. “We’re there to take care of the problems that are too big for themselves. I do have experience dealing with dark wizards.”

“I guess you do, Mr Vanquisher-of-Voldemort,” Andromeda laughed softly. “I still worry. In five years Teddy starts at Hogwarts and he’ll be outside our range of influence.” 

“Well unless you decide to become the healer at Hogwarts yes,” Harry said, not thinking deeper about it until he saw the pensieve look on Andromeda’s face. “You will not be taking the healer job at Hogwarts to keep an eye on Teddy.”

“But…”

“Andromeda,” Harry whispered softly. “They need to have space to grow up at some point. I can sneak you in the castle if you really must, but I'm not explaining anything to McGonagall when she catches you. When, not if!”

“I know, I’m just worrying.”

“We all are… So I talked to Fleur about us…”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah, she told me she would be taking you to bed if you ever got tired of me.”

“She would be right about that,” Andromeda nodded, a smirk playing on her lips. “I’m not just sharing you. You are sharing me with her, and sharing her with me.”

“That was pretty much the gist of it,” Harry said. “And the kissing in front of the children?”

“Harry… I  _ need _ you to show me that you want me,” Andromeda said nervously, hiding her face in his chest. “I still have my good looks, well, most of them anyway, but next to Fleur I'm an old lady.. I love her as much as I love you, but you are both young and beautiful - breathtaking… I’m…”

“Just as beautiful,” Harry whispered. “Alright. I understand. We were just worried about Teddy and Victoire’s reaction.” 

“They wouldn’t understand it as being any different, neither of them remember their dads. In everything but blood you are their dad. Teddy and Victoire might not see me as a mother…”

“I think they do.”

“Don’t interrupt me, even if you are being sweet,” Andromeda shushed him. “I’m just saying that I need you to kiss me and hug me even in front of them. It’s important to me.”

Harry did the only thing that came to his mind in response, he pulled her flush against him and kissed her deeply. She was intoxicating to him, the way she melted into him as if her bones had turned soft and flexible while she desperately clung to him, showing all of her insecurities and fears. 

Harry had begun to understand the differences between Andromeda and Fleur. Where Fleur was self-confident in her skills and looks, Andromeda had given up a future of wealth and power to be with her late husband Ted, and then lost everything again. She felt her age hanging over her like a spectre, a message that her chances had come and gone, and that she didn't, couldn't have another. 

Fleur was brash and forward, but Andromeda needed Harry and Fleur to take the lead. Harry could easily see how Andromeda would choose to stay silent about her suffering, believing that she didn't have the right to share. He would have to make sure that she understood how very much she was loved and wanted.

“From now on I expect to sleep next to you every night,” Harry whispered. “You are mine and I am yours until the day you decide  _ you _ don’t want  _ me _ anymore. I will  _ always _ want you, Andromeda Tonks, always.”

Harry felt his face burn as he spoke his mind. He had never said anything even close to this embarrassing before in his life. He wasn’t even sure where the words had come from, but they had felt right. He saw the glassy look on Andromeda’s face and the blooming smile playing on her lips, she was so beautiful, he just wanted to pull her back into his bedroom to have his wicked way with her.

“Thank you,” she whispered. “I needed that.”

“I should be the one thanking you,” Harry smiled softly. “Come on. I bet Teddy and Victoire are already about to burst from excitement.”

“They probably are,” Andromeda chuckled.

By the time Harry returned to the kitchen, Teddy and Victoire were already wearing their coats and scarfs, jumping from one foot to the other.

“I see you’re already ready to go,” Harry chuckled. “Well, are all of us going?” 

“I’m going to sit this one out,” Andromeda said. “You four have fun.”

“You sure, Andy?” Fleur asked. “It would be more fun having you with us.”

“No, no, I’ve got to read up on a particularly nasty case at work, maybe do some research in some of the old Black books. If I’m lucky, I’ll be able to find something about this specific curse.”

“Can you tell us who it is about?” 

“Unfortunately not,” Andromeda sighed. “Patient healer confidentiality.”

“Alright,” Harry shrugged.

There weren’t a lot of things they didn’t share between them, but sometimes it did happen. They all had jobs with secrecy agreements, so it was to be expected.

“Well, then it will just be the four of us,” Harry said. “Go on, get in the car.” 

“Why can’t we just floo?” Victoire asked. 

Fleur and Victoire had never really trusted the muggle contraption. Teddy enjoyed taking a ride on anything really. He still preferred Sirius’s old motorcycle, even if Andromeda called it a two-wheeled deathtrap. 

“Because we are going to the muggle zoo,” Harry explained softly. “We can’t use magic around the muggles. You know that.”

“Okay, Papa.”

It took them thirty minutes of driving before they pulled up in front of the zoo. It was the same zoo he had gone to on Dudley’s eleventh birthday. He enjoyed the scenery and it was completely different coming here as an adult with kids of his own compared to going there as a child.

“Dad, are you going to talk to the snakes again?” Teddy asked.

“Maybe,” Harry smirked. “They don’t usually have a lot of interesting stuff to say though, but if you are interested in hearing what they have to say then I suppose I could translate for you.” 

“Papa is scary when he sounds like a snake,” Victoire pouted. 

“If it scares you, ma chéri, then I’ll not do it,” Harry said softly, pulling her up on his hip. 

“That’s okay, Papa, I’m safe with you.” 

He nuzzled his face into her hair, watching Fleur extend her hand towards Teddy and couldn’t help but chuckle when Teddy blushed slightly as he took it. It was kind of endearing to see him act like that.

It didn’t take long before Victoire begged to be let down, so that she could walk around on her own. She instantly went over and grabbed Teddy’s other hand pulling him forward to go watch the different animals, whispering rabidly about something. 

“Don’t go running too far ahead,” Harry reminded them. “Make sure you can see me and Fleur at all times.” 

“Okay, Dad.” “Okay, Papa.”

Harry shook his head. They had too much energy sometimes. He felt Fleur’s presence next to him just before she wrapped her arms around his right arm. Harry blushed at her closeness.

“You are very cute, when you blush, ‘Arry,” Fleur narrowed her eyes like a kitten.

“Ha… ha…” Harry said drily. “Laugh it up. I can’t help it when one of the women I love shows me such a lovely smile.”

“Good answer,” Fleur said, kissing him on his cheek. “Do you think Andy decided not to come, so that we could have a date?”

“A date, which includes keeping an eye on two children?” Harry asked.

“You know what I mean,” Fleur huffed. “We would not be able to do this,” she squeezed his arm even tighter. “If both of us were here. People would look if you had a woman on each arm.”

“Let them look then,” Harry shrugged. “I’ve long since stopped caring about what people think about me.” 

“I see… I’ll be sure to tell Andy that when we get home,” Fleur teased. “We could get  _ Molly _ to take the children for a night, so we can all three go out on a date.” 

“Maybe,” Harry felt the collar of his shirt tighten. 

“Oh, are you becoming nervous?” Fleur giggled. 

“Sorry, it’s just all new. I’m not really all that experienced dating and Mrs Weasley will probably have a stroke when she finds out about us. She still holds that torch for me and Ginny, even if her daughter is happily engaged by now. And that's not even taking our third into account.  _ Our third _ , that will take some time to get used to.” 

“It is not like either Andromeda or I have much experience either,” Fleur said sadly. 

“What do you mean?”

“Bill was, well, not my first boyfriend, but the first one who was serious. Not just a few dates, but actual commitment. And we got married pretty quickly. Andromeda and Ted had been together since Hogwarts,” Fleur said patiently. “We have more experience being married than actually dating.” 

“Oh, I didn’t…”

“You don’t have to apologize every time Bill and Ted are brought up,” Fleur said, sadness littering her voice. “They are dead and buried. We were completely serious when we told you that we wanted  _ you _ .”

“I want you, too.”

“Good,” Fleur said, her eyes piercing into his. “We need to move or we are going to lose them.”

“Huh?”

“Teddy and Victoire,” Fleur flicked his forehead. “You know, the two children trying to get into the maison de reptiles.”

He frantically looked around until he spotted the black and silver duo bobbing up and down as they made their way over to the reptile house, breathing out a large sigh of relief, he pulled Fleur after them. Harry always found himself surprised that it wasn’t a more popular location in the zoo, especially in the slightly cold early November weather. He would have preferred a nice warm indoor location compared to the chilling wind outside, even Fleur seemed to relax more as they stepped inside.

“Come on, Dad, I want to hear what the boa says,” Teddy whispered frantically as he came up in front of them, pulling Victoire along by her hand.

“Are you alright, ma chéri?” Harry asked. “You can say no to Teddy if he pulls you around too much.”

“It’s okay,” Victoire mumbled. “We look like Mama and Papa.”

Fleur giggled and kissed Harry on the cheek, while Harry just awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. Teddy had definitely reached the age where girls were ‘yuck’ because he frantically started rubbing his cheek when Victoire copied her mum.

“Alright, alright,” Harry chuckled. “The boa constrictor right?”

Teddy nodded, trying to pull his hand away from Victoire, but like her mother, she had an almost ironclad grip on his arm now. Fleur had raised an eyebrow at her behaviour, but had decided not to comment on her behaviour for the moment. Harry led their little group over and cast a small scale Muffliato over them. He might not have liked Snape, but his non-lethal spells were everyday lifesavers.

“I didn’t think you were allowed to use magic around the Muggles, Mr Auror,” Fleur teased. 

“They’ll just hear a nondescript buzzing around us,” Harry shrugged. It’s better than having them hear me speaking parseltongue.  _ Hello Amigo _ .”

“ _ Aaah it hasss been long ssince the lasst time ssspeaker. Hello to you and your offssspring _ .”

“He says ‘hello,” Harry translated.  _ “You know they are not mine _ .”

_ “Do you not care for them? It mattersss not who laid the eggsss but who caresss for them. _ ”

Harry scratched his chin, the Boa had said the same thing every time they had visited, but something about his words today hit differently. It was an old argument really. Harry had always been nervous about considering Teddy and Victoire as  _ his _ , they would always be Remus’s son and Bill’s daughter, but maybe the snake was more right than Harry had wanted to agree with before as absurd as it was to take advice from a reptile.

What followed was a long series of questions from Teddy, the occasional question from Victoire and the silence from Fleur, which Harry translated for his little family until one of the zoo workers began looking at them funnily. It probably was out of the ordinary for a family to spend so much time on a single snake. Harry was just glad that nobody had connected him to the boy from twelve years ago. This boa was the first snake he had ever spoken to, he had even asked it if it wanted to come home with him, but the boa had declined. He had tasted freedom and didn’t find it all that interesting, here he at least got to see the reactions of people who were still scared that he would vanish the glass. He was feared as a cursed snake much to his own delight.

It was two thoroughly tired children that arrived home later that afternoon. The cold weather had drained any of their usual excess energy as they both sat in front of the large fireplace in the lounge. Harry found Andromeda sitting in the library with a large book on curses and their effects. Harry had given the book a cursory glance in the past few years, thinking it would give him an edge at his work.

“What are you looking for?” Harry asked as he wrapped his arms around the woman from behind.

“You’re back,” Andromeda sighed, leaning into his chest and closing her eyes.

They just enjoyed the closeness for a moment before they were interrupted by Victoire who was carrying a children’s book in her hands.

“Papa, could you read me a story?” 

“Of course, ma chéri,” Harry smiled. “We should talk later.”

Andromeda looked up at his face with a worried look on her face. He gently smiled down at her before leaning forward and kissing her softly, forgetting the small girl standing next to the sofa. He was pulled out of the kiss when a small gasp followed by a ‘yuck’ sound reminded him about their current audience.

“Papa, why are you eating Grandma’s face?”

Harry pulled up quickly, his face turning incredibly red. He mentally kicked himself. Hadn’t they just decided that they would ease in the shows of affections and here he was kissing Andromeda in front of Victoire. Well, he supposed he couldn’t get out of this one.

“Because Papa likes Grandma very much,” Harry explained gently. “Papa likes both Grandma and Mama very much.” 

“So, you’ll also be eating Mama’s face?” Victoire asked, her face scrunched up in disgust. 

“Yes,” Harry said, kneeling down next to her. “You see when grown-ups like each other very much they will want to do stuff like that.” 

“Hmm…”

He watched nervously as the little girl seemed to be thinking hard about what he had just told her. 

“Does that mean you like Mama very much?” 

“Yes.”

“Okay!”

Harry breathed out a sigh of relief, not having noticed how he had held onto his breath. It was a much better reaction than he had hoped for. It seemed that Victoire’s age worked in favour of them. Not quite old enough to know how things were  _ supposed _ to be, but old enough to understand liking someone. He pulled her into a tight hug, running his large coarse fingers through her hair. 

“Does that mean you’ll be my real Papa?” Victoire asked, her voice barely a whisper.

“Do you want me to?” 

“Yes,” she whispered.

Her small arms tightened around his waist and he almost lost balance falling back unto the floor with her enthusiasm.

“I suppose, we should tell Teddy too,” Andromeda mused, her eyes filled with warmth and relief.

“I guess,” Harry grinned up at her from his position. “Now that the cat is out of the bag, can I have one more?”

“Don’t push your luck, Potter,” Andromeda teased. “But I suppose you do deserve a reward for that explanation.”

Andromeda leaned over the arm of the sofa and gently kissed him again. Harry felt himself falling into those warm brown eyes all over as he looked into them. Her happiness made his heart flutter faster than the wings of a butterfly. He was just about to lean in and kiss her again when a pair of small hands pulled his face away from Andromeda’s face.

“Me too!”

Harry chuckled and placed a kiss on Victoire’s forehead.

“Not like that!”

“You aren’t a grown-up, ma chéri,” Harry teased gently. 

“Then when I’m grown up?” 

The sound of Andromeda’s laugh filled the room as Harry began to sweat under the icy blue eyes of Victoire. He helplessly looked towards Andromeda but only found mirth and a small amount of sadistic enjoyment at his predicament.

“Yes, Papa,” she teased. “Will you kiss her like that when she’s grown up?”

Harry rolled his eyes and reached out to tickle both of them. One thing he had found out last night was that Andromeda was so much more sensitive than Fleur. Every touch seemed to get a reaction out of her. Soon, he had both of them laughing and trying to fight back but even with only one arm against each of them, his physical conditioning seemed to win out. In a desperate move to save at least one of them Andromeda flung herself on top of Harry giving Victoire the chance to call for support. The sounds of her footsteps leaving the library announcing that they were alone once more.

“So, Mr Potter,” Andromeda said sultrily. “I think it is time for your revenge.”

Harry let her restrain his hands over his head as he watched her with all of the bubbling new feelings entering his eyes. They flickered in the light of the lamps as he laid there on the floor. He liked the way Andromeda would bite her lower lip as she debated whether she should kiss him or do something much worse.

“What did you want to talk about?” 

“Fleur and I…”

He felt more than saw the instant change in the woman straddled across his hips. He gently pulled his arms free from her hands and pulled her down on top of him, placing her head under his chin. 

“Andy,” Harry breathed out. “Did you not want to go with us because you thought you would be in the way?”

She didn’t answer him with words, but the way her body had begun to shake in his arms told him more than a thousand words would ever do.

“You silly woman,” Harry whispered, running his hands through her ebony locks. “You silly silly woman. We would have loved having you there. I want you.  _ We _ want you. We missed you being there.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” Harry said. “I’m… I’m not really good at this stuff. Frankly, I have no idea how to make this work without hurting one of us at some point. That’s why I need your help. I need both of your help with this.” 

Harry spotted Fleur over Andromeda’s head. He reached out for her with his right hand. She gently sat down next to them on the floor and ran her own hands through Andromeda’s hair.

“Andy, are you being bête again?”

“A little,” Harry chuckled. 

“I’m not being stupid,” Andromeda growled, but she didn’t make any move to distance herself from her position on top of Harry’s chest. “I’m just…”

“Just what?” Fleur asked gently.

“If we had both gone, then you wouldn’t have a chance to act like a couple,” Andromeda finished petulantly. “I just wanted you two to have a date without me tagging along.”

Fleur sighed loudly. She grabbed Andromeda on either side of her face and pulled her up, so she could look her in the eyes. Harry watched in fascination as Fleur pulled Andromeda’s face towards her and kissed her soundly on her lips. He felt himself stirring under Andromeda at the sight. It wasn’t the first time he had seen them kiss, but the only other time he had they had been decidedly compromised in his bed. Something about watching the two of them share a kiss fueled by love and affection was hundreds of thousands times more intimate and frankly hot than when they had done it in the throes of passion and lust. 

“Andromeda Tonks,” Fleur said. “You are as much my girlfriend as that brute down there is my boyfriend. I want you as much as I want him.” 

“I… I…”

“Andy,” Harry said, shifting uncomfortably. “We like you both and you shouldn’t remove yourself from this to give us a chance to have a date. At least not without telling us that was your intention. If you are more comfortable with us having dates just two of us at a time then that is fine, but talk to us.” 

Andromeda looked between the two of them for a moment before she hid her face behind her hands. Harry and Fleur equally pulled her in between them and let her cry out her insecurities over their new situation. She was as much a part of what they had as either Harry or Fleur was. 

“Why is Grandma crying?” 

At some point Teddy and Victoire had found their way to the Library, probably thinking that the tickle fight was still ongoing. Harry opened up his arm, inviting the two children into a hug. It didn’t take long before both of them had their arms firmly around Andromeda’s waist while Harry and Fleur completed the hug behind her. 

“We all love you,” Harry whispered into the crying woman’s ear. “Me, Fleur, Teddy and Victoire. We want you here and you are  _ not _ worth any less than our full love.”

Andromeda looked up from her position of crying into Harry’s neck. 

“You really mean that don’t you?” 

“Of course,” Harry said with a small smile. “We all do.”

He felt her kiss him, like a woman gasping for breath as she drowned. Everyone around them stilling as they watched Grandma ‘eat’ Harry’s face, Fleur chuckling softly from the other side of her. The kiss was awkwardly similar and not so similar to his first kiss with Cho Chang during his fifth year at Hogwarts. It was wet and salty but somehow the feelings pouring out of the distraught woman flowed into him. He had known that she was more sensitive than Fleur about everything. He felt her release him and he watched her turn her head around to pull Fleur into a kiss with the same amount of passion and relief. It wasn’t until Teddy exclaimed and began making gagging sounds that she released the blonde.

A chorus of laughter filled the library at his expression of pure disgust and nausea at their display. 

“Well, little man,” Harry chuckled, pulling Teddy into a hug. “I guess that is how you were going to find out.”

“So, this is going to be a regular thing?” Teddy asked nervously.

“Definitely,” Harry said. “Doesn’t mean I love you or Victoire any less.”

“Do I have to watch?”

Harry rolled his eyes as Andromeda and Fleur snickered. 

“No,” Harry said. “You don’t have to watch.” 

“Good,” Teddy sighed in relief. “Girls are ‘yuck’.”

Harry knew instantly that Teddy had made his first mistake about girls as he watched the snarl on Victoire’s face. If eyes could burn a person, Teddy would already have been a pile of ash on the floor. Luckily for him she wasn’t old enough to tap into that part of her heritage just yet. 

“Girls are what?” she asked menacingly.

Harry laughed out loud at the horrified look on Teddy’s face as the boy mechanically turned his head towards the little blonde that was eerily close to him. 

“Dad?”

“No, son,” Harry chuckled. “I’m not helping you out of this one.”

“But Dad?!”

“Just be glad that she can’t actually burn you just yet,” Harry said mirthfully.

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Fleur raised an eyebrow.

Harry broke out in a cold sweat, when he saw Fleur actually conjuring a small fire over her outstretched palm. He was  _ pretty  _ sure she was just kidding, but watching as she juggled the ball of flame between her fingers was never a good sign. Harry and Teddy shrunk in on themselves under the imperious glares from Fleur and Victoire. The tension in the room was building until Andromeda began snickering which quickly turned into a giggle. Her whole body shook as she rocked back and forth on Harry’s lap, having not moved from her position yet.

“Boys,” she managed to say between laughs. “I suppose, I should go get started on dinner.”

“Andy?!” “Grandma?!” Harry and Teddy said in equal panic, not wanting the last bastion of defence to leave them to their fate.

“I’m sure no one is getting too burnt,” Andromeda said, getting up on her feet. “I do want him to be more or less complete later.”

Fleur nodded at the witch before she turned her head sharply back to Harry. It was eerie how similar the two blondes were, he thought idly as he sighed preparing for what was likely a well deserved punishment from them. He supposed it was better for Teddy to learn early that some things you shouldn’t say out loud and just think inside. 

It was two rather crispy and tired looking males that found themselves sitting down at the dinner table. Across from Teddy a rather happy looking Victoire was eagerly eating her food while Teddy just pushed it around on the plate. Harry got eye contact with Andromeda who just smiled mirthfully back at him. Fleur had a smug and refreshed look on her face as she tried to coax Teddy to eat the food as well. 

Harry closed his eyes and leaned his head back onto the backrest. It had been little less than a day since his life had taken a drastic change and the only thing fluttering across his mind was.

_ Where do we go from here? _


	3. Lac au Clair de Lune

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello People
> 
> Back with another chapter, which wasn't supposed to exist.  
> DavidTheAthenai half bullied half bribed me into writing another chapter.  
> He also did the coverart for this story, so give him the love and credit he deserves.  
> Big thanks to HonorverseFan and Charlenette for beta-reading this chapter for me (at least on Fanfiction.net).
> 
> Enjoy  
> Waske  
> XxX

“Oi, Potter!”

“What?!” Harry snapped. “I’m getting off now. Don’t you dare throw another thing in my face, Smith.”

“Seriously, take a walk, Potter. Head Auror wants you in his office.”

Harry groaned loudly. He had never had a good working relationship with Boden. She was one of the few Aurors left over after the war and she had fought tooth, nail and wand for her position in the office. She had always felt like he had coasted into his job on the laurels of his name rather than ability. On one hand, she was right, on the other, he had been instrumental in the ending of a Dark Lord. So depending on the day, she could go fuck herself in his not so humble opinion. She blatantly ignored when the other Aurors ripped into him, calling him ‘The Orphanage Dad’ or any other derogatory thing and still she expected him to lick her boots because of her seniority. It was frustrating sometimes just being in the office. Honestly, some days he wasn’t even sure why he still worked there. They had pretty much rounded up the last of the notorious Death Eaters and he didn’t feel like running after Dark wizards and witches for the rest of his life. He had the money to not work for the rest of his life with what was left after the war.

“You wanted to see me, Boden?”

“Potter. Have a seat.”

“I’d rather not, what is it?”

“Your quarterly evaluation is up.”

“Anything new?”

“Your numbers are decent, you’ve got no complaints against you. Same as usual.”

“Good.” 

“One thing though. When are you going to treat me with the respect I deserve?”

“When are you going to make the other Aurors stop being arses about my private life?” Harry asked. 

“Get out of my sight.”

“Gladly.”

Harry stepped out of the fireplace at Grimmauld Place to find the kitchen looking like a war zone. On one side Fleur and Teddy were hunkering down behind a line of animated stuffed toys while on the other side Andromeda and Victoire had encased themselves behind a small fort of blocks. Some of the toys even looked slightly singed.

“Ahem.”

All four people turned to look at him with wide eyes.

“Is anyone going to explain what is going on here?” Harry lifted his eyebrow and sent a glance towards both of his lovers saying ‘we  _ will _ talk about this later’. What followed was a garbled explanation coming from the two kids about how they had gotten into an argument about what they were going to play and stuff. He didn’t really realise how the two women had gotten roped into it either. 

“Alright, alright,” Harry smiled. “I get it. Now go wash up. I’ll begin dinner while you do that.”

Harry waited until the door closed behind Teddy and Victoire before he turned his attention on Fleur and Andromeda. They looked chastised for some reason.

“Hey, how was work?” Fleur asked timidly.

“Fine,” Harry said, pulling both of them into a tight hug.

He breathed their scent in deeply as he held them close. A quick kiss for each of them later and he released them from his arms.

“That didn’t sound fine at all,” Andromeda pointed out.

“Nothing gets past you,” Harry chuckled tiredly. “It’s just…”

“Boden?” 

“Yeah. Had my Quarterly with her again. She really doesn’t like me.”

“It’s not like you try to endear yourself to her,” Andromeda ran a hand through his hair. “We both know how charming you can be.”

“I’m thinking of quitting,” Harry blurted out.

“You’re what?” Fleur asked.

“I said, I was thinking about quitting,” Harry said. “I just…”

They both led him to sit in his usual chair at the table. Fleur quickly cleaned up the toys and gathered them in a pile down the table, while Andromeda went to make a cup of tea for each of them. Harry just rested his face on the top of the wooden table, eyes closed and his arms sprawled out in front of him. 

It wasn’t until he felt a hot mug pushed against his hand that he looked up to find worried faces looked down towards him.

“From the beginning please,” Andromeda said softly.

“Alright.” 

He took a sip of the hot beverage and began telling them as much as his current oaths would allow about his work and how he either had to deal with people who worshipped him as some sort of god or Merlin twice returned or the people who hated his guts and everything he did was scrutinized into the smallest of details until they either came back completely spotless or the few mistakes he made got blown into such proportions that he was almost called into internal affairs.

“I’m just tired of it all,” Harry exclaimed. “I know I’m never likely going to be treated as normal but this… even when I’ve had three months of nothing against me. No mistakes, no complaints. Everything by the book. Do I get a ‘Good Job, Potter’, no I just get another question about when I’m going to show the proper respect towards authority. Sorry, I know I should be better, but I’m just tired of it all.”

“Then quit, ‘Arry.”

“What? Just like that?” 

“Oui,” Fleur nodded. “We have more than enough money with just me and Andy working even without the contents of your vaults.”

“And your thoughts?” 

“Honestly, if you don’t like your job there is no reason for you to stay there,” Andromeda shrugged. “I was thinking about doing the same for different reasons.”

“Really?” 

“Yeah,” Andromeda smiled. “Someone has got to teach Teddy and Victoire how to write and read soon and while they are fine where they are right now for that, it would help them to introduce some magical subjects. Plus, I know Teddy hates being under that glamour whenever he has to go to school.”

“You want to homeschool them?” Harry asked. “What would they be able to learn without a wand?”

“All of my siblings and Dora as well learned how to control their magic without a wand around their age. It usually started as soon as there was any sign of accidental magic.”

“But what about their friends?” Harry asked.

“Mon Ami,” Fleur rubbed his cheek. “They don’t really ask about the other kids. If you are worried about them not interacting with other children.”

“A little.”

“Teddy has been asking about football,” Andromeda said. “It hasn’t been possible for him to join the local club because we haven’t had a consistent schedule for him to be able to go.”

Harry leaned back in his chair with his eyes closed once more. Honestly, he was more worried about leaving his job and doing something different than he actually was about the two of them. He didn’t have friends while growing up and he turned out alright. Well, mostly. And they did have each other. He knew why Teddy and Victoire really didn’t open up to the other kids too at their pre-school. It was hard for them to not slip up between magical terms and mundane terms. The pre-school thought he was a detective, Andromeda a doctor and Fleur was an antiques dealer. It was the closest they had gotten to what the mundane version of a Curse-Breaker would be. 

“So what? We would just pull them out of pre-school?” Harry asked, as he walked into the kitchen. 

“Of course not,” Andromeda shook her head. “Teddy would have to go to primary school after the summer. He would have had to change either way. Victoire still has another year left in their pre-school but nobody would bat an eye if she followed Teddy.”

“So none of this matters until the summer?” 

“Not with the two of them at least,” Fleur said, hugging him from behind. “But you are not happy there, ‘Arry.” 

“What do  _ you _ want to do, love?” Andromeda asked from his side.

“I don’t know,” Harry shrugged. “Everything had always been planned out for me. The first thing that didn’t go according to plan was Ginny and me.”

He chuckled ruefully thinking about Ginny’s reaction to what he had done. Molly hadn’t been all too happy about it either, come to think of it. That relationship hadn’t even managed to last the summer before it had petered out. 

“Well, I’m  _ very  _ happy that  _ that part _ didn’t go according to plan,” Fleur said with a hint of demure. “Aren’t you, Andy?”

“Yes,” the woman in question giggled. “Very happy indeed. You could do anything, love. Is there anything you enjoy doing? Other than us, of course.”

“Of course,” Harry laughed. “Hmm… I enjoyed teaching the DA while I was at Hogwarts. I think I might be too old for quidditch.”

“You could get a mastery or two,” Andromeda mused. “I know Minerva has tried to get you to teach for a long time.”

“That’s just because nobody wants the Defence against the Dark Arts position,” Harry pointed out. “Even if it is no longer cursed after Voldemort died.”

It might be slightly sadistic but he enjoyed the way Fleur and Andromeda would flinch and draw themselves closer to him whenever he said the name. 

“Stop calling him that,” Andromeda hissed.

“It’s just a name,” Harry said mirthfully. 

“You are playing with fire,” Fleur breathed out. “Maybe you would like to stay on ze couch tonight?” 

“No no,” Harry laughed. “I would sleep horribly without you two snuggled close to me. What can I do to make it up to you?”

“A date.”

“Okay,” Harry agreed immediately. 

They hadn’t really gotten a chance to go out either just the two of them at a time or all three of them together since they had officially gotten together. They had all been so busy the past month. 

“I think it is time for you and Andy to go out,” Fleur stated more than suggested. “You’ll treat my beautiful Galaxie right, non?”

“What do you think?” Harry asked Andromeda. “I would love to go out with just the two of us, but I would also love to go out with all three of us together.” 

“I’d enjoy both,” she shrugged. 

“You and me on Saturday?” Harry asked. 

“I’d like that,” she smiled demurely. “Are you sure, Fleur?”

“Yes, I’ll take the kids for the evening and then you two can go out and have fun. Speaking off, they should have been back by now.”

She kissed both Harry and Andromeda before she waved her wand and the pile of toys followed her out of the kitchen as if she was the leader of a marching band, directing the stuffed toys in a line behind her. 

“So…”

“So what?” Andromeda asked.

“What would you like to do on our date?” 

“Surprise me,” Andromeda said quietly. 

Harry had wracked his brain all week trying to think of something he and Andromeda could do together on their impromptu date. He still hadn’t made a decision whether he was going to quit his job. It wasn’t as bad as he had made it out to be, it was just… suffocating. It hadn’t really left his head at any point during this time. He found himself thinking about taking a mastery. He had never expected himself to ever pursue the higher theoretical parts of magic. He never was as studious as Hermione for example. He was more the guy who did stuff than thought of said stuff, but maybe that was the problem. He always acted rather than sat back and thought about everything from every angle. Doing rather than thinking… he knew what he was going to do with Andromeda, now he just needed a quick trip to the portkey office before he got home. 

He returned home to find Teddy and Victoire sitting alone in the kitchen, Victoire was drawing with a couple of coloured pencils while Teddy was trying to write the different letters, something that he had begun doing in preschool as preparation for primary school. 

“Hey guys,” Harry announced.

“Dad.” “Papa.” 

Two small bodies almost bowled him over as they hugged the stuffing out of him. Harry tightly held each of them in his arm and stroked their heads with his hands. He felt the day’s tension leave his body as they squeezed his waist.

“Had a good day?” Harry asked.

“Uh-huh.”

“Teddy was very impressive when they played football,” Victoire said. “He scored the most goals.”

“Good job,” Harry grinned. “How is it going with the alphabet?” 

“I’m almost through the exercise Mrs Harris wants us all to do,” Teddy said proudly. 

“So how many letters is that?” 

“Almost all of them,” Teddy huffed proudly.

Harry flicked his wand out of his wrist holster and spelled “Teddy” in the air.

“What does that say?” Harry asked mischievously.

“Teddy.”

Harry blinked but it wasn’t Teddy who had read the word. Victoire looked insufferably smug as she stood there with her fists on her hips puffing chest up, her nose in the sky.

“Well done,” Harry said after his brain restarted. He really shouldn’t have been surprised in the slightest.

If there was one thing he should have remembered about those two, it was that Victoire would never allow herself to be left behind. If Teddy was asked to do something then she would do it either as well in the open or in secret. The problems only began when… 

“I knew that.”

“I’m sure you did,” Victoire snarked. “I just knew it faster.”

“Dad didn’t even ask you!”

“So?” 

“Alright alright,” Harry said firmly. “There is no reason to argue about it. I love you both no matter who is fastest. Now, where are Fleur and Andromeda?”

“They are upstairs,” Victoire said. “Grandma is getting ready for your date.”

“Is she now?” Harry smirked. “Well, I should get ready too then. Could you two go up and tell them that she should dress muggle but fancy?”

“Yes!” 

Harry watched as the two of them sprinted from the kitchen, their footsteps thundering up the stairs as they made their way to the fourth floor. Harry himself grabbed a glass of water before he made his way upstairs to the master bedroom. He threw his ropes in the nearby hamper and walked into his bathroom. He put the portkey on the sink before stepping into his shower. He hadn’t really done much today except for some overdue paperwork but he still wanted to feel fresh before taking Andromeda out. He hoped she would love his choice of venue, when she found out. It was a little more her style than he expected Fleur to prefer. He was lost in his thoughts and nerves when the door to his bathroom opened.

“‘Arry are you in there?” 

“Hey Fleur,” Harry squeaked. “I’m in the middle of showering here.”

“I know,” Fleur purred. “Want me to join you?” 

“I - Uhm - I -”

He was saved by the tinkling sound of her laughter. 

“Very funny,” Harry drawled. “So, anything you want?”

“I was serious, I wouldn’t mind jumping in with you,” Fleur said teasingly. “But maybe some other time. Andy is waiting for you. She is  _ very _ excité. Where are you taking her?”

“Are you going to run and tell her if I let you know?”

“Non.”

“It’s nothing special really,” Harry said. “Just a fancy romantic dinner at a restaurant and afterwards I heard about a ballroom place. I don’t think she has been able to go dancing in a long time.”

“Magnifique,” Fleur said. “She will love zat.”

“I hope so,” Harry said, turning off the water. “I just want to do something nice for her. We could go as well at some point if you want.”

“Non, I am not much for those stiff social dances,” Fleur shook her head. “I enjoy them more for the dresses than the dancing. I would like to go clubbing with Andy though. It would be  _ fun _ .” 

“Just the two of you or do you want company?” Harry asked as he dried himself off. 

“With you, of course, betê,” Fleur rolled her eyes. “I want to sandwich you between us and maybe visit the bathroom just the three of us.”

“You are going to give Andromeda a heart attack,” Harry chuckled. 

“Maybe,” Fleur shrugged. “I put out one of your better outfits on the bed.”

“Thanks,” Harry bent down and kissed her. “Thank you for being so okay with this.” 

“I was the one who suggested it in the first place. I do not mind. I’d rather have you both than not have you at all. Aren’t you the same?”

“I am,” Harry kissed her again. “Now get out of here, so that I can get ready.”

“It’s not like I haven’t seen it before,” Fleur huffed. 

“Do you need help with dinner?” 

“Non, me and the kids are going to order pizza and put on a movie,” Fleur said. “They wanted pizza when I asked. So I’m indulging them. One more kiss until I have to give you over to our lover?”

Harry pulled the blonde woman flush against his naked chest and kissed her until they both were short of breath. She gently ran her hand through his hair and kissed his forehead where the outline of his scar began before she turned around and left the room. Harry wasn’t sure if he should feel bad about leaving Fleur alone in the house with Teddy and Victoire. He logically understood that their relationship was like this, but emotionally his heart still betrayed him feeling like he was constantly cheating on both of them. Especially in a situation like this where he was taking just one of them out on a date. Hopefully, he would feel better after they had had a chance to have a date together without him. 

He quickly donned the suit Fleur had laid out for him. She would have an idea about matching outfits since she had seen both of them. It even gave him an idea about what Andromeda would be wearing. The jacket had a line of purple on it and the shirt was a shade of midnight blue while the rest of it was a dark green almost black. He tried to tame his hair in the mirror but gave it up as a bad job. He grabbed his contacts from the cabinet in the bathroom forgoing his usual glasses for the evening. 

He found Fleur and the kids sitting in the lounge with the TV debating what movie they were going to watch. Teddy’s favourite movie was about dinosaurs, they were the closest he would get to dragons while Victoire was a small disney princess in the making, she would watch anything from Disney, but she loved the princess movies, her favourite being Beauty and the Beast most of all.

A rush of vain pride rushed through him when Fleur spotted him. The way she licked her lips as her eyes roamed his look did a lot for his confidence. He went straight to her and gave her a chaste kiss on the lips, making her whimper into his mouth. He then turned to say his goodbyes and goodnights to Victoire and Teddy, neither of them really interested in what he looked like or decided to wear.

“You guys going to be alright without us?” Harry whispered into Fleur’s ear.

“Yes, ‘Arry,” she rolled her eyes. “Go, find our lover and have a beautiful night together. I’m expecting her to be especially… randy when you two get back.”

Harry chuckled as Fleur pulled him in for another kiss. She ran her hands through his hair before letting him go. 

“I might be slightly envious of Andy,” Fleur admitted with a slightly sheepish smile. 

“I -”

“Non, ‘Arry,” she shook her head. “It was unavoidable. I’m not going to be jealous but that doesn’t mean that I won’t be wanting to be in her place tonight.”

“We don’t have to do this, my beautiful flower,” a deeper voice said from behind Harry.

He turned around only for his jaw to drop down as he took in the woman he was going out with tonight. She was wearing a form-fitting long ball gown that flowed like it was weightless from her hips. It had the same purple colour as the single line in his suit and her hair was done up in an elaborate hairdo. She looked glowing with a hint of sadness that somehow added to look rather than took away from it. Harry pulled her close with one arm, the emotions on her face made him want to hug and kiss the sadness out of her.

“Non,” Fleur shook her head. “I’m just being stupid. Go have fun. It will be magnifique.” 

Andromeda pulled away from Harry, so she could reach down on the couch to give Fleur a lingering kiss.

“Ugh! Stop kissing.” Teddy grimaced. “All of you are embarrassing.”

“Right right,” Harry laughed. “We are not going to stop kissing.”

“Absolutely not.” Andromeda winked. “Be good okay?” 

“Of course, Grandma.” Teddy stuck out his tongue. 

“Yes, Grandma.” Victoire nodded. “You’re beautiful.”

"Thank you." Andromeda smiled. "Shall we?"

She offered her arm for Harry to take. They both sent flying kisses towards the group before they were out of the door. Harry led her down the stairs where he grabbed a long fur coat he had given Andromeda previously, draping it over her shoulders. 

"You still haven't told me where we are going."

"First, I'll take you out for a dinner at the Prancing Unicorn," Harry revealed. "The owner owes me a favour for when we helped them catch some vandals earlier this year, and I'm the man-who-conquered."

"You never use your name for anything."

"True, but I would use it if it made you or Fleur happy," he shrugged. "Honestly, I think Ernesto has a table reserved for me, Ron and Hermione permanently even if we'd never use it."

"And afterwards?"

"Now that would be telling." 

They arrived shortly after a quick apparition. The Prancing Unicorn had been known as one of the best magical restaurants by the Daily Prophet for the past few years. He had never really seen the need for going there but he had only been in a new relationship since Halloween. So, it wasn't like he had a need for going there until now. The front of the building had an animated sculpture of a unicorn jumping sedately back and forth on a platform over the entrance. Harry held open the door for Andromeda so she could walk through before following behind her.

"Mr Potter, so good to see you," Ernesto said as they walked in. "I have your table ready for you and Mrs Tonks."

"I trust that we won't be disturbed unnecessarily while dining, yes?"

"Of course not," Ernesto scoffed. "We pride ourselves here on our discretion."

"Lead the way then," Harry smiled. 

Ernesto turned around and brought them deeper into the restaurant. Harry smirked to himself as he heard the gasp coming from Andromeda as they walked into the main room. Tables were sporadically placed around a massive ballroom with long burgundy curtains hanging from the wall interspaced with large enchanted windows showing a forested valley with a golden river flowing between the trees. A setting sun that somehow cast a soft light, not irritating the eyes hung in the sky. In the ceiling massive crystal chandeliers with live candles burned and sparkled. Ernesto led them past a set of curtains into a smaller alcove with its own window where Harry elegantly seated Andromeda. Her coat hanging on the wall beside his own.

"I hope this suits your tastes," Ernesto said. "I'll bring the menus in a minute. Do you have any preference for a drink?"

Harry looked towards Andromeda. Of the two of them, she had the better knowledge of fine dining. Fleur was still the uncrowned queen of foods and wines in their home but Andromeda was no slouch.

"A bottle of wine for the starter," she said. “Choose something  _ inspired _ .”

"As you wish madame."

Andromeda waited until the curtains fell back down and the privacy runes weaved into the fabric activated as they seamlessly fell into the correct pattern before trying to get Harry’s attention. Harry had known about the feature but seeing it in action made his newly conditioned thirst for knowledge flare. He was certain that Fleur could have told him exactly how it worked and how it was possible for the runes to always activate when the curtain was undisturbed even if the delicate nature of rune configurations would be…

“... Harry?”

“Huh? Sorry, I got distracted by the curtains,” Harry admitted sheepishly.

“I see,” Andromeda pouted playfully. “You’re more interested in a set of dusty cloth than little old me.”

Harry gulped loudly as Andromeda leaned forward giving him an unobstructed glance down her neckline where the deep purple dress did less to hide her mesmerizing womanly features. The soft but slightly ridiculing smile on her lips turned sadistically playful when he began struggling to meet her eyes.

“I do so..  _ Enjoy _ it when you’re looking, but my eyes are up here,  _ Love _ .”

The breathy tone of her voice jolted Harry’s higher brain functions back into gear. He coughed quietly to hide his embarrassment that only rose as he heard the soft giggles coming from the woman in front of him. 

“Andy,” Harry groaned. “I’m sorry.”

“Good.” 

Her smile didn’t change at all. She eyed him lasciviously and in that moment Harry knew what it was to be prey. To be wanted, desired so completely that you alone were another’s focus. It was a thrilling, intoxicating, nerve-wracking feeling. She held his gaze unwavering in her eyes, drawing him into her, helplessly as he sat there, waiting, expecting for something to break the tentative balance between them. Her tongue slowly ran along the edge of her lips and with the sound of rustling from the curtains it was gone. In her place sat the impeccable woman he had come to known unfazed and in control as she always was.

“I hope I didn’t take too long,” Ernesto said as he walked up to their table. “I’ve brought a Millésime from 1954. It will pair nicely with seafood if you so desire.”

“Thank you, Ernesto,” Andromeda said with a soft smile. “That’ll do nicely.”

“Here are the menus.”

“Surprise us,” Andromeda said. “You do know more than we do after all.”

“As you wish, madame.”

Harry watched for the second time that evening as Ernesto made his way out of their small private space, unsure what he was about to witness from the woman opposite him. A flicker of excitement ran through his body, but no sign of the woman from before reappeared, leaving him with an uncertain sense of loss. He knew it was greedy, but the slight hint of something else, something more from the woman had left him hungering for that gaze on him. It left him unsure whether it had been an illusion of the light or something he had imagined altogether by himself. 

“Aren’t you going to pour us a glass?” Andromeda said with a hint of a tease.

He blinked between her eyes and the newly arrived bottle a few times before he got himself together. A playful smile appearing on his lips. 

“Of course,” he nodded. “I’m sorry, where are my manners?”

“I don’t know,” Andromeda said, absentmindedly rolling the tip of her dainty fingers around a loose strand of hair. “It wouldn’t do for you to forget them.”

A small chuckle escaped his lips as he gently poured the correct amount of wine into their glasses. It gave him something to focus on while his mind spun in unending circles, trying to make sense of what had happened before they were interrupted. 

“Cheers,” Harry said, lifting up his own glass. “And thank you.”

“For what?” 

“For coming with me,” Harry said, tasting the words. “For being with me and for being you, I suppose.”

“Very eloquent,” Andromeda teased. “Thank you for asking me.”

“I should have done it sooner.”

“No, stop thinking like that. You have not made me feel any less wanted over the past month. I never made it known that I wanted… this to happen. So, it is not your fault nor is it mine. We will have plenty of time to work on our communication as time goes on. Don’t worry about it, love.”

They were interrupted once more as Ernesto came in, balancing plates filled with mussels and abarones garlic butter on a plate. A small spread of green puré lined the plate like the shores against the sea. 

“Bon appetit.”

Harry looked suspiciously at his plate, sneaking glances at the woman opposite him. She took the smallest fork with one hand and the smallest knife with the other and pinned the first of her mussels with them as she removed the flesh from its shell. Harry must have been staring, resulting in Andromeda clearing her throat. He flicked his gaze to her face and once more the bemused smile that he thought was just a passing daydream had reappeared on her face.

“You’ve never had clams before?” she asked gently.

“Ehm, nope,” Harry shrugged embarrassedly. “My relatives wouldn’t have been caught dead eating something like this and Hogwarts isn’t really the place for something…” he trailed off.

“I’ll teach you then,” Andromeda said, fondness filling her voice. “Here’s what you need to do.” 

What followed was a series of easy to understand instructions, followed by a gentle string of encouragements. He found that they tasted better with the garlic butter used rather liberally on top of the spongy flesh but overall his first taste of shelled food was a success. 

“Fleur would be happy to know that you enjoyed it,” Andromeda mused. “It is distinctly more French than anything.”

“She does moan sometimes about British food.” Harry chuckled. “Though I’m not sure this would be a hit with Teddy and Victoire.” 

“Probably not.” Andromeda laughed gently. “Still, if you want to do something nice for her, you should try to learn how to cook French cuisine.”

“Maybe.” Harry leaned back thoughtfully. “But that is a thought for another time. Tonight is about us.”

Harry smiled victoriously as he spotted the signs of blushing emerging on Andromeda’s cheeks and neck. The spots of flushed skin against her pale visage brought a contrast to her demeanour that was unlike anything Harry had seen from her before. Her eyes were cast at an angle that slightly hid the twinkle mirrored in the sparkling reflection of their wine. She looked intoxicated and intoxicating for the one infinite moment, for an eternity of a heartbeat before it was gone. Flown away on a winter's breeze, heralding the coming of pure white snow.

Following their starter Ernesto brought them both two sides of baked salmon, their conversation roamed and spread across a multitude of topics as they enjoyed a rare moment of company, indulging in a discussion of the more esoteric parts of their chosen fields. Harry found himself relaxing and participating in the more scarcely understood parts of healing as Andromeda waxed on about how minor modifications to potions would have enormous consequences for a patient’s health as they tried to help not only the fairly simple injuries and illnesses but also the aforethought unhealable conditions that some of their long term patients found themselves in. The usage of not only commonly accepted methods but also the experimental avenues that she and others were researching in both new and old studies fascinated him. He knew she was passionate about her field, but never before had she been in a situation that allowed her to extrapolate on what would for most people be intangible for the common wizard or witch. 

He almost wished their dinner would never end, but he was getting excited about surprising her as their dinner wound down after they had both luxuriated in an almost forbidden fruit of a chocolate cake they had decided to share, sometimes feeding each other, sometimes not. It didn’t take long for Harry to pay Ernesto as he came asking if they wanted something else. He didn’t miss the small glimmer of disappointment at the thought of their night ending flashing over Andromeda’s eyes before she managed to school her features into a neutral setting of warmth and happiness once more.

“This has been an amazing night,” Andromeda said with a hint of sadness. “I would love to do something like this again.”

“Who said the night was over?” Harry asked mischievously.

“What do you mean?” 

He pulled out a small red ribbon from his pocket tying it around their wrists as he held her hand in his. He thoroughly enjoyed the look of confusion on her face, his lips tugging to form a crescent arch as a grin threatened to split his lips. He pulled her close with his free arm around her waist and gently kissed her in the alley, they had walked to. Her body seemed boneless against his own as if she was made of the gentlest water, shaping itself flush against his frame. 

“Illuminé.”

A far gentler tug against their navel pulled them along on their travel. He felt her clasping against him to keep from falling as he gently placed themselves down on the ground as their portkey wound down. The small scowl waging against the smile on her lips in an almost childlike pout was too much for him to bear as his body rumbled with laughter. 

“It’s not funny,” she whispered petulantly. “Where are we?”

“Berlin.” 

“And more specifically?” a threatening arch of her eyebrow demanded. 

“Clärchen’s Ballhaus,” Harry said with a grin. “There is a live orchestra tonight.”

The gasp of shock coming from the woman in his arms delighted him far more than he would ever admit. Her eyes flickered once more with a sense of youthful delight as she spun around to watch the building in question. 

“How did you know?” 

“A quick question here and a small autograph there,” Harry shrugged. “It wasn’t hard to find out. I had a hard time trying to make this a night you would never forget.”

“You’ve done admirably so far.”

“Only admirably?” Harry teased. 

“Don’t get ahead of yourself,” Andromeda stated imperiously. 

“Of course, my love.”

Harry led them up the steps to the building. A snap of his fingers made their names appear on the guestlist as Mr and Mrs Black. The slight squeezing of his arm by Andromeda alerted him of a change in her bearing, but he didn’t get a chance to mention it before another gasp made it past her lips at the sight of the ballroom. The room itself was magnificent in its lighting, large spots of light made their way over the dancefloor in a soft motion while a more sedate blueish light spread from the ceiling. At the end of the room the orchestra was already playing a fast paced waltz as they gave their coats to the wardrobe. 

He noticed that the ribbon he had crudely tied around her wrist now resembled a fine fabric fingerless glove extending past the back of her hand, tying itself around the base of her middle finger extending almost all the way up to her elbow. The asymmetrical look of her arms drew attention to its placement on his own as he led her to an open spot on the floor. She pulled herself close into his arms as the piece shifted into something more sedate. His hands found their places, one on the small of her back and one in his own as he left her in tune with the violin as they floated over the wooden floor in a world of their own. His emerald eyes found her brown as they lost themselves in each other. She was beautiful in his eyes as her purple gown swirled around her as they turned around each other. He barely noticed the music shifting once more as he seamlessly led her from one dance into another. They didn’t stop until the orchestra took a break neither of them realizing how long they had been dancing for if it wasn’t for the faint layer of perspiration that adorned her dazzling skin. 

He pulled her tightly against himself and captured her lips in a chaste but lasting kiss. Pulling away from her, he felt himself enthralled in the light that shone from her eyes, trapping him unknowingly in a web of emotions that left him unable to fend for himself, if he would have ever wanted to. He found himself losing any semblance of coherent thought as everything he was and would be was left at her tender mercies. 

“I could use a drink,” she chuckled seductively, bringing him out of his awe. “You  _ do  _ know how to make a girl feel special though.”

And then she was gone from his arms, bringing along everything that she was. He dumbfoundedly found himself following her wake as if her mere presence promised the coming of spring and her absence would signal the beginning of winter. He knew that she knew what she was doing and he found himself wanting more. This Andromeda was so unlike anything he had seen before tonight and he wished, no he needed this Andromeda,  _ his  _ Andromeda to stay. 

He protectively placed his arms around her as she gestured for the bartender to bring two cocktails for them to enjoy along with water. She reached up around his neck with the red clad hand and gently ran her fingers in circles around his neck, pulling herself flush against his chest. 

“Entschuldigung fräulein, könnte ich den nächsten Tanz haben?”

Andromeda giggled as she felt Harry’s arm tighten around her waist. She turned her gaze back towards his face and ran a finger along his jaw before she rounded her attention on the interloper. With a seductive smile that promised everything and nothing at the same time she glanced up and down the man’s frame. Harry felt himself turning nervous as the pause lingered. He waited with bated breath as she opened her mouth to unleash a single word.

“Nein.”

Harry felt his whole body relax as the man walked away with a shrug of his shoulders, not at all bothered by the rejection. He wouldn’t have objected if she had agreed, but the rush of relief that flooded him almost floored him where he stood. He did however feel slightly embarrassed when she turned around with a questioning glance towards him.

“You could have said yes if you wanted to,” he said weakly, trying to curb the almost animalistic rush of possessiveness. “I would not have made a fuss about it.”

“Harry, my love, I don’t want to dance with anyone but you tonight,” she said sincerely. “Maybe some other time, but tonight is for me and you.” 

“Me and you,” he echoed. 

They drank their cocktail in silence as they gathered their breath. She leaned her head back against his shoulder as they stood there waiting for the music to start anew, her scent and her everything filling his thoughts and everything. His thoughts were interrupted as an olive on a stick entered his field of vision. 

“Do you want it?” she asked.

He slowly wrapped his lips around the salty fruit and gently pulled it off the stick in a tantalizing manner, enjoying the way her eyes followed his every move. The slight taste of the martini was intermixed as he chewed before swallowing.

“I don’t know if I can last all night.”

“Huh?” he eloquently murmured. 

“I said, I don’t know if I can last all night,” Andromeda breathed into his ear. “I want you badly right now. I want to feel your skin against my own…”

Whatever she was about to continue was interrupted as the music started again. Harry gently guided her onto the floor, distracting himself from the images she had conjured in his mind. 

He felt more than saw her draping her body against his chest as a slow tune began to play. Like a long-forgotten song being brought new life in the arms of another. It reminded him of her. Andromeda had lived and lost. She wore her experience and maturity like jewellery. Like a gown, it dripped from her. And like a star did she shine. If Fleur was the moon, bright and lustrous, then Andromeda was the lake. She held the beauty of Clair de Lune as well, in her reflected depths but was a darker, wilder creature. She was real, she rolled over him in waves whereas Fleur shone fantasy-like from above, gentle and warm. Yes, Andromeda had lived. She had borne a life more difficult than most. But it had not broken her. It had made her beautiful.

“What are you thinking about?”

“You, Fleur, us,” Harry whispered. “I still cannot believe my luck.” 

“Luck had nothing to do with it,” Andromeda gently chided. “Look at what lengths you go to to make us happy. You are a brilliant father and an amazing man, who cherishes and loves us both. We couldn’t have been happier with anyone else.”

“Thank you.”

“You don’t have to thank me,” Andromeda sighed. “There is nothing to thank me for.”

They swayed for a few more pieces before Andromeda took a step back. Harry looked questioningly at her. Her smile lit up the room in front of his eyes. 

“I’m ready to go home,” she spoke softly. “I miss her. Next time I wish she would be here with us.” 

“Me too,” Harry smiled softly. “I enjoyed our time together, but you’re right it’s not the same without her.”

She grabbed his hands and pulled him towards the wardrobe with a skip in her steps. Gone was the stoic countenance that she usually carried herself with and in its place a seductress had taken over promising him anything and everything he ever could have thought of wanting.

They had barely made it down the street before he found himself pressed against the wall in an all-consuming embrace, her lips smashed against his own, her hands making their way under his coat to unbutton his shirt. His arms wrapped around her waist pulling her flush against him.

“How do we get home?”

“Clair de lune.”

The familiar tug of a portkey took them through the air as she kissed him again. She didn’t open her eyes until she felt them stop. She looked around to find herself lying on top of him in their bed. 

“Welcome home,” a sleepy voice sounded out next to them.

Andromeda began opening her coat from her position, but found her arms stuck behind her back.

“Our moon, could I have a little help?” 

“Certainly,” Fleur said mirthfully. “Did you have a good evening?”

“We missed you,” Andromeda said.

As soon as her coat was pulled off her arms she vigorously attacked the sleepy blonde with her hands and her lips, showing that they wouldn’t soon get any sleep if she had anything to say about it.


End file.
